Free fermionic models and symmetric heterotic toroidal orbifolds both constitute exact backgrounds that can be used effectively for phenomenological explorations within string theory. Even though it is widely believed that for Z2xZ2 orbifolds the two descriptions should be equivalent, a detailed dictionary between both formulations is still lacking. This paper aims to fill this gap: We give a detailed account of how the input data of both descriptions can be related to each other. In particular, we show that the generalized GSO phases of the free fermionic model correspond to generalized torsion phases used in orbifold model building. We illustrate our translation methods by providing free fermionic realizations for all Z2xZ2 orbifold geometries in six dimensions.
We study heterotic asymmetric orbifold models. By utilizing the lattice engineering technique, we classify (22,6)-dimensional Narain lattices with right-moving non-Abelian group factors which can be starting points for Z3 asymmetric orbifold construction. We also calculate gauge symmetry breaking patterns.
We study kinetic mixing between massless U(1) gauge symmetries in the bosonic formulation of heterotic orbifold compactifications. For non-prime Z_N factorisable orbifolds, we find a simple expression of the mixing in terms of the properties of the N=2 subsectors, which helps understand under what conditions mixing can occur. With this tool, we analyse Z_6-II heterotic orbifolds and find non-vanishing mixing even without including Wilson lines. We show that some semi-realistic models of the Mini-Landscape admit supersymmetric vacua with mixing between the hypercharge and an additional U(1), wh…
We consider properties of the CKM phase in the heterotic orbifold models. We find that at the renormalizable level the CKM phase vanishes identically for the prime orbifolds, whereas it can be non-zero for some non-prime orbifolds. In particular, we study in detail the Z_6-I orbifold which allows for a non-trivial CKM phase and analyze the modular properties of the corresponding Jarlskog invariant. The CKM phase is shown to vanish if the moduli fields are stabilized at Im T_i=\pm 1/2.
We study spontaneous gauge symmetry breaking in the framework of orbifold compactifcations of heterotic string theory. In particular we investigate the electroweak symmetry breakdown via the Higgs mechanism. Such a breakdown can be achieved by continuous Wilson lines. Exploiting the geometrical properties of this scheme we develop a new technique which simplifies the analysis used in previous discussions.
Using Z3 asymmetric orbifolds in heterotic string theory, we construct N=1 SUSY three-generation models with the standard model gauge group SU(3)_C \times SU(2)_L \times U(1)_Y and the left-right symmetric group SU(3)_C \times SU(2)_L \times SU(2)_R \times U(1)_{B-L}. One of the models possesses a gauge flavor symmetry for the Z3 twisted matter.
We study systematically the possibility for realizing realistic values of quark mass ratios $m_c/m_t$ and $m_s/m_b$ and the mixing angle $V_{cb}$ by using only renormalizable Yukawa couplings derived from heterotic orbifold models. We assume one pair of up and down sector Higgs fields. We show realistic examples including hierarchical and democratic forms of Yukawa matrices.
The three generation heterotic-string models in the free fermionic formulation are among the most realistic string vacua constructed to date, which motivated their detailed investigation. The classification of free fermion heterotic string vacua has revealed a duality under the exchange of spinor and vector representations of the SO(10) GUT symmetry over the space of models. We demonstrate the existence of the spinor-vector duality using orbifold techniques, and elaborate on the relation of these vacua to free fermionic models.
We use deep autoencoder neural networks to draw a chart of the heterotic $\mathbb{Z}_6$-II orbifold landscape. Even though the autoencoder is trained without knowing the phenomenological properties of the $\mathbb{Z}_6$-II orbifold models, we are able to identify fertile islands in this chart where phenomenologically promising models cluster. Then, we apply a decision tree to our chart in order to extract the defining properties of the fertile islands. Based on this information we propose a new search strategy for phenomenologically promising string models.
The $Z_2\times Z_2$ heterotic string orbifold gives rise to a large space of phenomenological three generation models that serves as a testing ground to explore how the Standard Model of particle physics may be incorporated in a theory of quantum gravity. Recently, we demonstrated the existence of type 0 $Z_2\times Z_2$ heterotic string orbifolds in which there are no massless fermionic states. In this paper we demonstrate the existence of non--supersymmetric tachyon--free $Z_2\times Z_2$ heterotic string orbifolds that do not contain any massless bosonic states from the twisted sectors. We du…
We discuss heterotic strings on Z_2 x Z_2 orbifolds of non factorisable six-tori. Although the number of fixed tori is reduced as compared to the factorisable case, Wilson lines are still needed for the construction of three generation models. An essential new feature is the straightforward appearance of three generation models with one generation per twisted sector. We illustrate our general arguments for the occurrence of that property by an explicit example. Our findings give further support for the conjecture that four dimensional heterotic strings formulated at the free fermionic point ar…
A three-generation Pati-Salam model is constructed by compactifying the heterotic string on a particular T^6/Z_6 Abelian symmetric orbifold with two discrete Wilson lines. The compactified space is taken to be the Lie algebra lattice G_2+SU(3)+SO(4). When one dimension of the SO(4) lattice is large compared to the string scale, this model reproduces many features of a 5d SO(10) grand unified theory compactified on an S^1/Z_2 orbifold. (Of course, with two large extra dimensions we can obtain a 6d SO(10) grand unified theory.) We identify the orbifold parities and other ingredients of the orbif…
The orbifolder is a program developed in C++ that computes and analyzes the low-energy effective theory of heterotic orbifold compactifications. The program includes routines to compute the massless spectrum, to identify the allowed couplings in the superpotential, to automatically generate large sets of orbifold models, to identify phenomenologically interesting models (e.g. MSSM-like models) and to analyze their vacuum-configurations.
We classify N=1 orbifolds on the E_6 root lattice and investigate explicit model constructions on the Z_3xZ_3 orbifold in heterotic string theory. Interestingly some of the twisted sectors from the Z_3xZ_3 orbifold on the E_6 root lattice have just three fixed tori respectively, and generate three degenerate massless states. We also found three point functions with flavor mixing terms. We assume only non-standard gauge embeddings and find that they lead to three-family SU(5) and SO(10) GUT-like models. These models also include strongly coupled sectors in the low energy and messenger states ch…
We report results relating to the trinification scenario in some explicit string constructions that contain SU(3)^3 as a gauge symmetry. These models are obtained from symmetric Z_3 orbifolds of the SO(32) heterotic string with one discrete Wilson line. We highlight the obstacles that were encountered: the absence of the usual Higgs sector that would break SU(3)^3 \to SU(3)_c \times SU(2)_L \times U(1)_Y; the presence of exotics that would generically befoul gauge coupling unification and lead to fractionally-charged states in the low energy spectrum.
We give an alternative description of the Schoen manifold as the blow-up of a Z2xZ2 orbifold in which one Z2 factor acts as a roto-translation. Since for this orbifold the fixed tori are only identified in pairs but not orbifolded, four-dimensional chirality can never be obtained in heterotic string compactifications using standard techniques alone. However, chirality is recovered when its tori become magnetized. To exemplify this, we construct an E8xE8' heterotic SU(5) GUT on the Schoen manifold with Abelian gauge fluxes, which becomes an MSSM with three generations after an appropriate Wilso…
We present $Z_3$ orbifold compactifications of $E_8\times E_8^\prime$ heterotic string with three Wilson lines, resulting to the maximum number of SU(3) factors. Here, all the matter spectrums are in the SU(3) trits($\equiv $ three representations ${\bf 3,\bar 3,1}$) of the $SU(3)^8$ GUT. Using this information, we show how three family supersymmetric standard models(SSM) can be obtained. Also, the low lying interesting representations(fundamental and adjoint) of $E_6$ and $E_8$ are given in terms of trits, establishing simple criteria for treating these low lying representations of exceptiona…
We perform the first systematic analysis of particle spectra obtained from heterotic string compactifications on non-Abelian toroidal orbifolds. After developing a new technique to compute the particle spectrum in the case of standard embedding based on higher dimensional supersymmetry, we compute the Hodge numbers for all recently classified 331 non-Abelian orbifold geometries which yield N=1 supersymmetry for heterotic compactifications. Surprisingly, most Hodge numbers follow the empiric pattern h^(1,1) - h^(2,1) = 0 mod 6, which might be related to the number of three standard model genera…
We systematically study the possibility for realizing realistic values of lepton mass ratios and mixing angles by using only renormalizable Yukawa couplings derived from heterotic $Z_6$-I orbifold. We assume one pair of up and down sector Higgs fields. We consider both the Dirac neutrino mass scenario and the seesaw scenario with degenerate right-handed majorana neutrino masses. It is found that realistic values of the charged lepton mass ratios, $m_e/m_τ$ and $m_μ/m_τ$, the neutrino mass squared difference ratio, $Δm^2_{31}/Δm^2_{21}$, and the lepton mixing angles can be obtained in certain c…
We compare heterotic string models on orbifolds with supergravity models on smooth compact spaces, obtained by resolving the orbifold singularities. Our main focus is on heterotic E8xE8 models on the resolution of the compact T^6/Z_3 orbifold with Wilson lines. We explain how different gauge fluxes at various resolved fixed points can be interpreted in blow down as Wilson lines. Even when such Wilson lines are trivial from the orbifold perspective, they can still lead to additional symmetry breaking in blow-up. Full agreement is achieved between orbifold and resolved models, at the level of ga…
We investigate asymmetric orbifold models constructed from non-supersymmetric heterotic strings. We systematically classify the asymmetric orbifold models with standard embeddings and present a list of asymmetric orbifolds which are geometrically interpreted as toroidal compactifications of non-supersymmetric heterotic strings. By studying non-standard embedding models, we also construct examples of the {\em supersymmetric} asymmetric orbifold models based on non-supersymmetric heterotic strings.
We show that non-Abelian discrete symmetries in orbifold string models have a gauge origin. This can be understood when looking at the vicinity of a symmetry enhanced point in moduli space. At such an enhanced point, orbifold fixed points are characterized by an enhanced gauge symmetry. This gauge symmetry can be broken to a discrete subgroup by a nontrivial vacuum expectation value of the Kähler modulus $T$. Using this mechanism it is shown that the $Δ(54)$ non-Abelian discrete symmetry group originates from a $SU(3)$ gauge symmetry, whereas the $D_4$ symmetry group is obtained from a $SU(2)$…
Discovering a selection principle and the origin of flavor symmetries from an ultraviolet completion of particle physics is an interesting open task. As a step in this direction, we classify all possible flavor symmetries of 4D massless spectra emerging from supersymmetric Abelian orbifold compactifications, including roto-translations and non-factorizable compact spaces, for generic moduli values. Although these symmetries are valid in all string theories, we focus on the E8 x E8 heterotic string. We perform the widest known search of E8 x E8 Abelian orbifold compactifications, yielding over …
A Z_2 orbifold compactification of the heterotic string is considered. The resulting 6D GUT groups can be SO(16) or E_7 times SU(2) plus some hidden sector groups. The N=4 supersymmetry is reduced to N=2. In particular, the SO(16) 6D model with one spinor representation 128 can reduce to the previous 5D SO(16) or SO(14) family unification models after compactifying the sixth dimension. To obtain one spinor, we have to take into account the left-over center of SO(16). We also comment on the E_7 times SU(2) model.
We consider D=6, N=1, Z_M orbifold compactifications of heterotic strings in which the usual modular invariance constraints are violated. It is argued that in the presence of non-perturbative effects many of these vacua are nevertheless consistent. The perturbative massless sector can be computed explicitly from the perturbative mass formula subject to an extra shift in the vacuum energy. This shift is associated to a non-trivial antisymmetric B-field flux at the orbifold fixed points. The non-perturbative piece is given by five-branes either moving in the bulk or stuck at the fixed points, gi…
Anomalies of discrete R-symmetries appearing in heterotic orbifold models are studied. We find that the mixed anomalies for different gauge groups satisfy the universal Green-Schwarz (GS) condition, indicating that these anomalies are canceled by the GS mechanism. An exact relation between the anomaly coefficients of the discrete R-symmetries and one-loop beta-function coefficients is obtained. We also find that the discrete R-symmetries have a good chance to be unbroken down to the supersymmetry breaking scale. Even below this scale a $Z_2$ subgroup is unbroken, which may be an origin of the …
We study L-point couplings between twisted sector fields in heterotic orbifold compactifications, using conformal field theory. Selection rules provide an easy way to identify which couplings are non-vanishing. Those used in the current literature are gauge invariance, R-charge conservation and the space group selection rule, but they are not the whole story. We revive and refine a fourth selection rule, due to symmetries in the underlying torus lattice, and introduce a fifth one, due to the existence or not of classical worldsheet instanton solutions to mediate the couplings. We consider brie…
We classify compactification lattices for supersymmetric Z2 times Z2 orbifolds. These lattices include factorisable as well as non-factorisable six-tori. Different models lead to different numbers of fixed points/tori. A lower bound on the number of fixed tori per twisted sector is given by four, whereas an upper bound consists of 16 fixed tori per twisted sector. Thus, these models have a variety of generation numbers. For example, in the standard embedding, the smallest number of net generations among these classes of models is equal to six, while the largest number is 48. Conditions for all…
We explicitly analyse $O(α')$ corrections to heterotic supergravity on toroidal orbifolds and their resolutions, which play important roles in string phenomenology as well as moduli stabilisation. Using a conformal factor ansatz that is valid only for four dimensional geometries, we obtain a closed expression for the $O(α')$ metric corrections in the case of several orbifold limits of K3, namely $T^4/\mathbb{Z}_n$ where $n=2,3,4,6$. However, we find that non-standard embedding requires the inclusion of five-branes on such orbifolds. We also numerically investigate the behaviour around orbifold…
We study the problem of moduli stabilisation in explicit heterotic orbifold compactifications, whose spectra contain the MSSM plus some vector-like exotics that can be decoupled. Considering all the bulk moduli, we obtain the 4D low energy effective action for the compactification, which has contributions from various, computable, perturbative and non-perturbative effects. Hidden sector gaugino condensation and string worldsheet instantons result in a combination of racetrack, KKLT and cusp-form contributions to the superpotential, which lift all the bulk moduli directions. We point out the pr…
We provide a complete classification of six-dimensional symmetric toroidal orbifolds which yield N>=1 supersymmetry in 4D for the heterotic string. Our strategy is based on a classification of crystallographic space groups in six dimensions. We find in total 520 inequivalent toroidal orbifolds, 162 of them with Abelian point groups such as Z_3, Z_4, Z_6-I etc. and 358 with non-Abelian point groups such as S_3, D_4, A_4 etc. We also briefly explore the properties of some orbifolds with Abelian point groups and N=1, i.e. specify the Hodge numbers and comment on the possible mechanisms (local or …
Heterotic orbifold models are promising candidates for models with MSSM like spectra. But orbifolds only correspond to a special place in moduli space, the bigger picture is described by the moduli space of Calabi-Yau spaces. In this talk we will make explicit connections between both points of view. To this end we study blowups of orbifold singularities using both explicit constructions and toric geometry techniques. We show that matching of all orbifold models in blowups are possible.
Following the recent exploration of smooth heterotic compactifications with unitary bundles, orbifold compactifications in six dimensions can be shown to correspond in the blow-up to compactifications with U(1) gauge backgrounds. A powerful tool is the comparison of anomaly polynomials. The presentation here focuses on heterotic SO(32) compactifications in six dimensions including five-branes. Four dimensional and E8 x E8 models are briefly commented on.
Direct and indirect dark matter searches can potentially lead to the discovery of Supersymmetry. In the specific context of heterotic orbifold compactification scenarios, it is even possible to get some clues on the SUSY breaking mechanism of the more fundamental underlying theory. In this paper, we investigate the prospects for indirect detection of neutralino dark matter via gamma-ray (continuum and line) and synchrotron radiation from the Galactic center, in the context of AMSB scenarios in an effective heterotic framework, which constitutes a consistent SUSY model between high energy theor…
We obtain the spectrum of heterotic strings compactified on orbifolds, focusing on its algebraic structure. Affine Lie algebra provides its current algebra and representations. In particular the twisted spectrum and the Abelian charge are understood. The twisted version of algebra is used in the homomorphism from the orbifold action to the group action. The relation between the conformal weight and the mass gives a handy rule.
We study the modular symmetry on magnetized toroidal orbifolds with Scherk-Schwarz phases. In particular, we investigate finite modular flavor groups for three-generation modes on magnetized orbifolds. The three-generation modes can be the three-dimensional irreducible representations of covering groups and central extended groups of $Γ_N$ for $N=3,4,5,7,8,16$, that is, covering groups of $Δ(6(N/2)^2)$ for $N=$ even and central extensions of $PSL(2,\mathbb{Z}_{N})$ for $N=$odd with Scherk-Schwarz phases. We also study anomaly behaviors.
Free fermionic construction of four dimensional string vacua, are related to the Z2XZ2 orbifolds at special points in the moduli space, and yielded the most realistic three family string models to date. Using free fermionic construction techniques we are able to classify more than 10^10 string vacua by the net family and anti-family number. Using a montecarlo technique we find that a bell shaped distribution that peaks at vanishing net number of chiral families. We also observe that ~15% of the models have three net chiral families. We find that in addition to mirror symmetry that the distribu…
I consider the construction of heterotic orbifold models based on a toroidal orbifold with non Abelian point group. I construct an explicit model based on the point group $S_3$ and calculate the spectrum and remnant symmetries. This model provides a simple example of rank reduction of the Yang--Mills gauge group directly in the string theory rather than in the effective field theory.
We extend the promising heterotic string searches for MSSM-like models to Z_8 orbifolds. There exist five inequivalent Z_8 toroidal orbifolds distinguished by two types of twists that act on five different torus lattices; one of which cannot be represented as a Lie-algebra root lattice. Contrary to previous investigations, we study the consequences of the different underlying orbifold torus lattices. Therefore, rather than focussing on one particular geometry, we perform systematic model searches on these five Z_8 orbifolds simultaneously, taking all possible inequivalent SU(5) and SO(10) gaug…
We analyze the structure of heterotic M-theory on K3 orbifolds by presenting a comprehensive sequence of M-theoretic models constructed on the basis of local anomaly cancellation. This is facilitated by extending the technology developed in our previous papers to allow one to determine "twisted" sector states in non-prime orbifolds. These methods should naturally generalize to four-dimensional models, which are of potential phenomenological interest.
We study moduli stabilization in combination with inflation in heterotic orbifold compactifications in the light of a large Hubble scale and the favored tensor-to-scalar ratio $r \approx 0.05$. To account for a trans-Planckian field range we implement aligned natural inflation. Although there is only one universal axion in heterotic constructions, further axions from the geometric moduli can be used for alignment and inflation. We argue that such an alignment is rather generic on orbifolds, since all non-perturbative terms are determined by modular weights of the involved fields and the Dedeki…
We study effects of D-brane instantons wrapping rigid cycles on Z2*Z2' toroidal orbifold. We compute Majorana masses induced by rigid D-brane instantons and realize bimaximal mixing matrices in certain models. We can also derive more generic mass matrices in other models. The bimaximal mixing Majorana mass matrix has a possibility to explain observed mixing angles. We also compute the mu-term matrix among more than one pairs of Higgs fields induced by rigid D-brane instantons.
We study the bulk effective theory of a class of orbifolds of the type IIB string with D5-branes, compactified to four dimensions. These constructions are connected, in a region of their moduli space, to some orbifolds of the type I and heterotic string. We compare the effective actions through the coupling of the R^2 term, and we argue that these orbifolds provide non-perturbative deformations of the latter, in which the gauge group is entirely non-perturbative.
We consider toroidal asymmetric orbifolds of the heterotic string preserving all 16 supercharges, developing a general formalism to study components of the moduli space characterized by rank reduction of the gauge group. In particular we construct six- and four-dimensional heterotic islands with no massless moduli other than the dilaton. The formalism involves the Leech lattice, its automorphisms and their corresponding invariant and normal, or coinvariant, sublattices.
We investigate resolutions of heterotic orbifolds using toric geometry. Our starting point is provided by the recently constructed heterotic models on explicit blowup of C^n/Z_n singularities. We show that the values of the relevant integrals, computed there, can be obtained as integrals of divisors (complex codimension one hypersurfaces) interpreted as (1,1)-forms in toric geometry. Motivated by this we give a self contained introduction to toric geometry for non-experts, focusing on those issues relevant for the construction of heterotic models on toric orbifold resolutions. We illustrate th…
By studying phase transitions in supersymmetric gauge theories with Green-Schwarz anomaly cancellation, a natural relation is found between sigma models on certain non-Kahler manifolds with intrinsic torsion and asymmetric Landau-Ginzburg orbifolds. In these orbifold limits, a quantum anomaly of the orbifold action is cancelled by discrete phases in the partition function. These intrinsic torsion phases are derived by blowing down cycles supporting non-trivial H-flux in the linear model. This correspondence extends the CY-LG correspondence to special non-Kahler manifolds and provides computati…
By fibering the duality between the $E_{8}\times E_{8}$ heterotic string on $T^{3}$ and M-theory on K3, we study heterotic duals of M-theory compactified on $G_{2}$ orbifolds of the form $T^{7}/\mathbb{Z}_{2}^{3}$. While the heterotic compactification space is straightforward, the description of the gauge bundle is subtle, involving the physics of point-like instantons on orbifold singularities. By comparing the gauge groups of the dual theories, we deduce behavior of a "half-$G_{2}$" limit, which is the M-theory analog of the stable degeneration limit of F-theory. The heterotic backgrounds ex…
In this talk we argue that a certain class of heterotic orbifolds can be the underlying fundamental theory for recently studied field theory GUTs. In addition we demonstrate that symmetric heterotic Z2 times Z2 orbifolds can give rise to three generation models if quantised Wilson lines are switched on.
We show how the level matching condition in six dimensional, abelian and supersymmetric orbifolds of the E_8 x E_8 heterotic string can be given equivalently in terms of fractional gauge and gravitational instanton numbers. This relation is used to restate the classification of the orbifolds in terms of flat bundles away from the orbifold singularities under the constraint of the level matching condition. In an outlook these results are applied to Kaluza-Klein monopoles of the heterotic string on S^1 in Wilson line backgrounds.
We review recent results on string coupling selection rules for heterotic orbifolds, derived using conformal field theory. Such rules are the first step towards understanding the viability of the recently obtained compactifications with potentially realistic particle spectra. They arise from the properties of the worldsheet instantons that mediate the couplings, and include stringy effects that would seem 'miraculous' to an effective field theory observer.
This thesis provides a classification of the chiral content of the heterotic $\mathbbm{Z}_2 \times \mathbbm{Z}_2$ orbifold models. We show that the chiral content of the heterotic $\mathbbm{Z}_2 \times \mathbbm{Z}_2$ orbifold models at any point in the moduli space can be described by a free fermionic model. We present a direct translation between the orbifold formulation and the free fermionic construction. We use the free fermionic description for the classification wherein we consider orbifolds with symmetric shifts. We show that perturbative three generation models are not obtained in the …
In string-inspired semi-realistic heterotic orbifolds models with an anomalous $U(1)_X$, a nonzero Kobayashi-Masakawa (KM) phase is shown to arise generically from the expectation values of complex scalar fields, which appear in nonrenormalizable quark mass couplings. Modular covariant nonrenormalizable superpotential couplings are constructed. A toy $Z_3$ orbifold model is analyzed in some detail. Modular symmetries and orbifold selection rules are taken into account and do not lead to a cancellation of the KM phase. We also discuss attempts to obtain the KM phase solely from renormalizable i…
We provide a new class of Z_N x Z_M heterotic orbifolds on non-factorisable tori, whose boundary conditions are defined by Lie lattices. Generally, point groups of these orbifolds are generated by Weyl reflections and outer automorphisms of the lattices. We classify abelian orbifolds with and without discrete torsion. Then we find that some of these models have smaller Euler numbers than those of models on factorisable tori T^2 x T^2 x T^2. There is a possibility that these orbifolds provide smaller generation numbers of N=1 chiral matter fields than factorisable models.
To obtain a unified framework for symmetric and asymmetric heterotic orbifold constructions we provide a systematic study of Narain compactifications orbifolded by finite order T-duality subgroups. We review the generalized vielbein that parametrizes the Narain moduli space (i.e. the metric, the B-field and the Wilson lines) and introduce a convenient basis of generators of the heterotic T-duality group. Using this we generalize the space group description of orbifolds to Narain orbifolds. This yields a unified, crystallographic description of the orbifold twists, shifts as well as Narain modu…
Recently spatially localized anomalies have been considered in higher dimensional field theories. The question of the quantum consistency and stability of these theories needs further discussion. Here we would like to investigate what string theory might teach us about theories with localized anomalies. We consider the Z_3 orbifold of the heterotic E_8 x E_8 theory, and compute the anomaly of the gaugino in the presence of Wilson lines. We find an anomaly localized at the fixed points, which depends crucially on the local untwisted spectra at those points. We show that non-Abelian anomalies ca…
We study compactification of heterotic strings to three dimensions on orbifolds of G_2 holonomy. We consider the standard embedding and show that the gauge group is broken from E_8 x E_8 or SO(32) to F_4 x E_8 or SO(25) respectively. We also compute the spectrum of massless states and compare with the results obtained from reduction of the 10-dimensional fields. Non-standard embeddings are discussed briefly. For type II compactifications we verify that IIB and IIA have equal massless spectrum.
We investigate orbifold and smooth Calabi-Yau compactifications of the non-supersymmetric heterotic SO(16)xSO(16) string. We focus on such Calabi-Yau backgrounds in order to recycle commonly employed techniques, like index theorems and cohomology theory, to determine both the fermionic and bosonic 4D spectra. We argue that the N=0 theory never leads to tachyons on smooth Calabi-Yaus in the large volume approximation. As twisted tachyons may arise on certain singular orbifolds, we conjecture that such tachyonic states are lifted in the full blow-up. We perform model searches on selected orbifol…
We explore a ``fertile patch'' of the heterotic landscape based on a Z_6-II orbifold with SO(10) and E_6 local GUT structures. We search for models allowing for the exact MSSM spectrum. Our result is that of order 100 out of a total 3\times 10^4 inequivalent models satisfy this requirement.
