We explicitly construct the holographic dual configuration for the four dimensional $\mathcal{N}=4$ superconformal block containing half-BPS scalar primary operators by considering its full $AdS_5 \times S^5$ dual geometry. We extend the embedding space formalism and the related Harmonic analysis to general $d$-dimensional sphere $S^d$, and obtain precisely the $R$-symmetry contribution to the half-BPS scalar superconformal blocks, which we refer as "$R$-symmetry block". We also observe that the $R$-symmetry quadratic Casimir operator can be mapped to BC$_{2}$ Calogero-Sutherland system Hamiltonian, such that $R$-symmetry block is in terms identified as its bound state wave function.
We present a conjectural description of the space of local operators on a stack of finitely many fivebranes in $M$ theory at the level of the holomorphic twist. Our approach is through the lens of twisted holography and utilizes a description of the minimal twist of eleven-dimensional supergravity. We find that the spaces of local operators are modules for the exceptional linearly compact super Lie algebra $E(3|6)$. From the conjectural description of local operators we deduce closed formulas for the superconformal index of six-dimensional $\mathcal{N}=(2,0)$ theories of type $A_{N-1}$.
We evaluate the superconformal index of the Y^{p,q} quiver gauge theories using Romeslberger's prescription. For the conifold quiver Y^{1,0} we find exact agreement at large N with a previous calculation in the dual AdS_5 X T^{1,1} supergravity.
We consider the problem of computing (irregular) conformal blocks in 2d CFTs whose chiral symmetry algebra is the N=2 superconformal algebra. Our construction uses two ingredients: (i) the relation between the representation theories of the N=2 superconformal algebra and the affine sl(2) algebra, extended to the level of the conformal blocks, and (ii) the relation between affine sl(2) conformal blocks and instanton partition functions in the 4d N=2 SU(2) gauge theory with a surface defect. By combining these two facts we derive combinatorial expressions for the N=2 superconformal blocks in the…
We find the warped AdS_4 x K type-IIB supergravity solutions holographically dual to a large family of three dimensional \cN=4 superconformal field theories labeled by a pair (ρ,\hatρ) of partitions of N. These superconformal theories arise as renormalization group fixed points of three dimensional mirror symmetric quiver gauge theories, denoted by T^ρ_{\hat ρ}(SU(N)) and T_ρ^{\hat ρ}(SU(N)) respectively. We give a supergravity derivation of the conjectured field theory constraints that must be satisfied in order for these gauge theories to flow to a non-trivial supersymmetric fixed point in t…
The complex nonperturbative color-confining dynamics of QCD is well captured in a semiclassical effective theory based on superconformal quantum mechanics and its extension to the light-front. I describe here how this new approach to hadron physics incorporates confinement, the appearance of nearly massless pseudoscalar particles, and Regge spectroscopy consistent with experiment. It also gives remarkable connections between the meson and baryon spectrum across the light and heavy-light hadron spectrum. I also briefly discuss how higher spin states are consistently described in this framework …
In this paper we investigate the holographic Rényi entropy in $\mathcal N=1$ supergravity (SUGRA) in AdS$_3$ spacetime, which is dual to the two-dimensional $\mathcal N=(1,1)$ superconformal field theory (SCFT). We consider both cases of two short intervals on a line with zero temperature and one interval on a circle with low temperature. In SUGRA side we consider contributions of both graviton and gravitino, and in SCFT side we consider contributions of both stress tensor $T$, $\bar T$ and their superpartners $G$, $\bar G$. We find matches between SUGRA and SCFT results.
The holographic nonsupersymmetric renormalization group flows in four dimensions are found. The mass-deformed N=2, 4 Chern-Simons matter theories can be reproduced from N=1 Chern-Simons matter theory by putting some constraints in the mass terms. We construct the geometric superpotential, from an eleven dimensional M-theory lift, which provides M2-brane probe analysis for the infrared ends of various supersymmetric or nonsupersymmetric flows.
We investigate the holographic Rényi entropy for two-dimensional $\mathcal N=(2,2)$ superconformal field theory (SCFT), which is dual to $\mathcal N=2$ supergravity in AdS$_3$ background. In SCFT we have the stress tensor, current, and their supersymmetric partners, and in supergravity we have the graviton, vector field, and two gravitinos. We get the Rényi mutual information of two short intervals on complex plane in expansion by the cross ratio $x$ to order $x^4$, and Rényi entropy of one interval on torus in expansion by $q=\exp(-2πβ/L)$, with $β$ being the inverse temperature and $L$ being…
In the framework of six-dimensional conformal field theories with ${\cal N}=(1,0)$ supersymmetry we develop the map between the holographic description, the field theoretical description and the associated Hanany-Witten set-ups. General expressions that calculate various observables are presented. The study of string solitons singles out a special background of Massive IIA on which we show (by explicitly finding a Lax pair) that the Neveu-Schwarz part of the string sigma model is classically integrable. We study the particular dual conformal field theory and compute some of its observables.
We construct global solutions to Type IIB supergravity with 16 residual supersymmetries whose space-time is $AdS_6 \times S^2$ warped over a Riemann surface. Families of solutions are labeled by an arbitrary number $L\geq 3$ of asymptotic regions, in each of which the supergravity fields match those of a $(p,q)$ five-brane, and may therefore be viewed as near-horizon limits of fully localized intersections of five-branes in Type IIB string theory. These solutions provide compelling candidates for holographic duals to a large class of five-dimensional superconformal quantum field theories which…
We investigate a relation between the super topological recursion and Gaiotto vectors for $\mathcal{N}=1$ superconformal blocks. Concretely, we introduce the notion of the untwisted and $μ$-twisted super topological recursion, and construct a dual algebraic description in terms of super Airy structures. We then show that the partition function of an appropriate super Airy structure coincides with the Gaiotto vector for $\mathcal{N}=1$ superconformal blocks in the Neveu-Schwarz or Ramond sector. Equivalently, the Gaiotto vector can be computed by the untwisted or $μ$-twisted super topological r…
We construct an effective QCD light-front Hamiltonian for both mesons and baryons in the chiral limit based on the generalized supercharges of a superconformal graded algebra. The superconformal construction is shown to be equivalent to a semi-classical approximation to light-front QCD and its embedding in AdS space. The specific breaking of conformal invariance inside the graded algebra uniquely determines the effective confinement potential. The generalized supercharges connect the baryon and meson spectra to each other in a remarkable manner. In particular, the $π/b_1$ Regge trajectory is i…
We describe the observed light-baryon spectrum by extending superconformal quantum mechanics to the light front and its embedding in AdS space. This procedure uniquely determines the confinement potential for arbitrary half-integer spin. To this end, we show that fermionic wave equations in AdS space are dual to light-front supersymmetric quantum mechanical bound-state equations in physical space-time. The specific breaking of conformal invariance explains hadronic properties common to light mesons and baryons, such as the observed mass pattern in the radial and orbital excitations, from the s…
We present prescriptions for obtaining the central charges, $a$ and $c$, of a four dimensional superconformal quantum field theory from the superconformal index. At infinite $N$, for holographic theories dual to Sasaki-Einstein 5-manifolds the prescriptions give the $\mathcal{O}(1)$ parts of the central charges. This allows us, among other things, to show the exact AdS/CFT matching of $a$ and $c$ for arbitrary toric quiver CFTs without adjoint matter that are dual to smooth Sasaki-Einstein 5-manifolds. In addition, we include evidence from non-holographic theories for the applicability of thes…
We present a prescription for obtaining the difference of the central charges, c-a, of a four dimensional superconformal quantum field theory from its single-trace index. The formula is derived from a one-loop holographic computation, but is expected to be valid independent of holography. We demonstrate the prescription with several holographic and non-holographic examples. As an application of our formula, we show the AdS/CFT matching of c-a for arbitrary toric quiver CFTs without adjoint matter that are dual to smooth Sasaki-Einstein 5-manifolds.
We explore the connection between the holographic Weyl anomaly and the superconformal index in six-dimensional $(1,0)$ theories. Using earlier results from holographic computations of the $\mathcal O(1)$ contributions $δa$ and $δ(c-a)$ to the corresponding six-dimensional Weyl anomaly coefficients, we derive a pair of differential operators that extracts these values from the large-$N$ single-trace index. In doing so, we also highlight the structure of these corrections in terms of group theory invariants of the superconformal representations.
This study presents comprehensive examples of $\mathfrak{osp}(\mathcal{N}|2)$ Chern$\,-\,$Simons supergravity on $AdS_3$ for $\mathcal{N}>2$. These formulations, which include the most general boundary conditions, represent extensions of previously discovered works $(\textit{Ozer and Filiz$,$Eur Phys J C 82(5):472, 2022})$ for $\mathcal{N}<3$. In our work, we show that under the loosest set of boundary conditions, the asymptotic symmetry algebras consist of two copies of the $\mathfrak{osp}(3|2)_k$ and $\mathfrak{osp}(4|2)_k$ algebras. We subsequently restrict the gauge fields upon the boundar…
General 1-point toric blocks in all sectors of N=1 superconformal field theories are analyzed. The recurrence relations for blocks coefficients are derived by calculating their residues and large $Δ$ asymptotics.
We develop techniques for computing superconformal blocks in 4d superconformal field theories. First we study the super-Casimir differential equation, deriving simple new expressions for superconformal blocks for 4-point functions containing chiral operators in theories with N-extended supersymmetry. We also reproduce these results by extending the "shadow formalism" of Ferrara, Gatto, Grillo, and Parisi to supersymmetric theories, where superconformal blocks can be represented as superspace integrals of three-point functions multiplied by shadow three-point functions.
We study four-point correlation functions of four generic half-BPS supermultiplets of N=4 SCFT in four dimensions. We use the two-particle Casimir of four-dimensional superconformal algebra to derive superconformal blocks which contribute to the partial wave expansion of such correlators. The derived blocks are defined on analytic superspace and allow us in principle to find any component of the four-point correlator. The lowest component of the result agrees with the superconformal blocks found by Dolan and Osborn.
We show how to treat the superconformal algebras with eight Poincaré supercharges in a unified manner for spacetime dimension $2 < d\leq 6$. This formalism is ideally suited for analyzing the quadratic Casimir operator of the superconformal algebra and its use in deriving superconformal blocks. We illustrate this by an explicit construction of the superconformal blocks, for any value of the spacetime dimension, for external protected scalar operators which are the lowest component of flavor current multiplets.
For SCFTs with an $SU(2)$ R-symmetry, we determine the superconformal blocks that contribute to the four-point correlation function of a priori distinct half-BPS superconformal primaries as an expansion in terms of the relevant bosonic conformal blocks. This is achieved by using the superconformal Casimir equation and the superconformal Ward identity to fix the coefficients of the bosonic blocks uniquely in a dimension-independent way. In addition we find that many of the resulting coefficients are related through a web of linear transformations of the conformal data.
We use supershadow methods to derive new expressions for superconformal blocks in 4d $\mathcal{N}=1$ superconformal field theories. We analyze the four-point function $\langle\mathcal{A}_1 \mathcal{A}_2^\dagger \mathcal{B}_1 \mathcal{B}_2^\dagger\rangle$, where $\mathcal{A}_i$ and $\mathcal{B}_i$ are scalar superconformal primary operators with arbitrary dimension and $R$-charge and the exchanged operator is neutral under $R$-symmetry. Previously studied superconformal blocks for chiral operators and conserved currents are special cases of our general results.
All types of 4-point spheric conformal blocks in both sectors of N=1 superconformal field theory are introduced and analyzed. The elliptic recurrence formulae are derived for all the types of blocks not previously discussed in the literature. The results are used for numerical verification of the crossing symmetry of some 4-point functions in the N=1 superconformal Liouville field theory.
In a four-dimensional $\mathcal{N}=2$ superconformal quiver theory with gauge group $\mathrm{SU}(N)\times\mathrm{SU}(N)$ and bi-fundamental matter, we analytically obtain the exact strong-coupling behavior of the normalized 3-point correlators of single-trace scalar operators in the large-$N$ limit using localization techniques. We then obtain the same strong-coupling behavior from the holographic dual using the AdS/CFT correspondence at the supergravity level. This agreement confirms the validity of the analytic strong-coupling results and of the holographic correspondence in a non-maximally …
We discuss aspects of holography in the AdS_3 \times S^p near string geometry of a collection of straight fundamental heterotic strings. We use anomalies and symmetries to determine general features of the dual CFT. The symmetries suggest the appearance of nonlinear superconformal algebras, and we show how these arise in the framework of holographic renormalization methods. The nonlinear algebras imply intricate formulas for the central charge, and we show that in the bulk these correspond to an infinite series of quantum gravity corrections. We also makes some comments on the worldsheet sigma…
The γ-trace anomaly of supersymmetry current in a supersymmetric gauge theory shares a superconformal anomaly multiplet with the chiral R-symmetry anomaly and the Weyl anomaly, and its holographic reproduction is a valuable test to the AdS/CFT correspondence conjecture. We investigate how the γ-trace anomaly of the supersymmetry current of {\cal N}=1 four-dimensional supersymmetric gauge theory in an {\cal N}=1 conformal supergravity background can be extracted out from the ${\cal N}=2$ gauged supergravity in five dimensions. It is shown that the reproduction of this super-Weyl anomaly origina…
We compute the $\mathcal{N}=1$ superconformal blocks from the networks of open Wilson lines in the $\text{osp}(1|2)$ Chern-Simons theory in the expansion of large central charge $c$. We first reproduce the $1/c$ correction of conformal weight from an open Wilson line by adopting the regularization prescription developed in our previous works. We then obtain the closed form expressions of superconformal blocks including $1/c$ corrections, which were not available before. We also examine heavy operators corresponding to supersymmetric conical spaces, and the geometry is quantized by utilizing th…
We find the holographic dual to the three classes of superconformal Janus interfaces in $\mathcal{N}=4$ SYM that preserve three-dimensional $\mathcal{N}=4$, $\mathcal{N}=2$, and $\mathcal{N}=1$ supersymmetry. The solutions are constructed in five-dimensional SO(6) maximal gauged supergravity and are then uplifted to type IIB supergravity. Corresponding to each of the three classes of Janus solutions, there are also AdS$_4\times S^1\times S^5$ J-fold backgrounds. These J-folds have a non-trivial SL$(2,\mathbb{Z})$ monodromy for the axio-dilaton on the $S^1$ and are dual to three-dimensional sup…
The structure of the 4-point N=1 super-conformal blocks in the Ramond sector is analyzed. The elliptic recursion relations for these blocks are derived.
We study 2d N=4 superconformal field theories, focusing on its application on numerical bootstrap study. We derive the superconformal block by utilizing the global part of the super Virasoro algebra and set up the crossing equations for the non-BPS long-multiplet 4-point function. Along the way, we build global N=4 superconformal short and long multiplets, and compute all possible 2,3-point functions of long-multiplets that are needed to construct the superconformal blocks and the crossing equations. Since we consider a long-multiplet 4-point function, the number of crossing equations is huge …
We compute the most general superconformal blocks for scalar operators in $4\mathcal{D}$ $\mathcal{N}=1$ superconformal field theories. Specifically we employ the supershadow formalism to study the four-point correlator $\langleΦ_1 Φ_2 Φ_3 Φ_4\rangle$, in which the four scalars $Φ_i$ have arbitrary scaling dimensions and R-charges with the only constraint from R-symmetry invariance of the four-point function. The exchanged operators can have arbitrary R-charges. Our results extend previous studies on $4\mathcal{D}$ $\mathcal{N}=1$ superconmformal blocks to the most general case, which are the …
By studying the previously known holographic N=4 supersymmetric renormalization group flow(Gowdigere-Warner) in four dimensions, we find the mass deformed Chern-Simons matter theory which has N=4 supersymmetry by adding the four mass terms among eight adjoint fields. The geometric superpotential from the eleven dimensions is found and provides the M2-brane probe analysis. As second example, we consider known holographic N=8 supersymmetric renormalization group flow(Pope-Warner) in four dimensions. The eight mass terms are added and similar geometric superpotential is obtained.
We systematically classify all possible poles of superconformal blocks as a function of the scaling dimension of intermediate operators, for all superconformal algebras in dimensions three and higher. This is done by working out the recently-proven irreducibility criterion for parabolic Verma modules for classical basic Lie superalgebras. The result applies to correlators for external operators of arbitrary spin, and indicates presence of infinitely many short multiplets of superconformal algebras, most of which are non-unitary. We find a set of poles whose positions are shifted by linear in $…
In this work we launch a systematic theory of superconformal blocks for four-point functions of arbitrary supermultiplets. Our results apply to a large class of superconformal field theories including 4-dimensional models with any number $\mathcal{N}$ of supersymmetries. The central new ingredient is a universal construction of the relevant Casimir differential equations. In order to find these equations, we model superconformal blocks as functions on the supergroup and pick a distinguished set of coordinates. The latter are chosen so that the superconformal Casimir operator can be written as …
We calculate the superconformal indices of the $\mathcal N=2$ superconformal field theories realized on $N$ coincident D3-branes in 7-brane backgrounds with constant axiodilaton via the AdS/CFT correspondence. We include the finite-$N$ corrections as the contribution of D3-branes wrapped around 3-cycles in the internal space. We take only single-wrapping contributions into account for simplicity. We also determine the orders of the next-to-leading corrections which we do not calculate. The orders are relatively high, and we obtain many trustable terms. We give the results for $N=1,2,3$ explici…
We present a universal treatment for imposing superconformal constraints on Mellin amplitudes for $\mathrm{SCFT_d}$ with $3\leq d\leq 6$. This leads to a new technique to compute holographic correlators, which is similar but complementary to the ones introduced in [1,2]. We apply this technique to theories in various spacetime dimensions. In addition to reproducing known results, we obtain a simple expression for next-next-to-extremal four-point functions in $AdS_7\times S^4$. We also use this machinery on $AdS_4\times S^7$ and compute the first holographic one-half BPS four-point function. We…
We generalize previous results on N=1, (3+1)-dimensional superconformal block quiver gauge theories. It is known that the necessary conditions for a theory to be superconformal, i.e. that the beta and gamma functions vanish in addition to anomaly cancellation, translate to a Diophantine equation in terms of the quiver data. We re-derive results for low block numbers revealing an new intriguing algebraic structure underlying a class of possible superconformal fixed points of such theories. After explicitly computing the five block case Diophantine equation, we use this structure to reorganize t…
Superconformal blocks and crossing symmetry equations are among central ingredients in any superconformal field theory. We review the approach to these objects rooted in harmonic analysis on the superconformal group that was put forward in [J. High Energy Phys. 2020 (2020), no. 1, 159, 40 pages, arXiv:1904.04852] and [J. High Energy Phys. 2020 (2020), no. 10, 147, 44 pages, arXiv:2005.13547]. After lifting conformal four-point functions to functions on the superconformal group, we explain how to obtain compact expressions for crossing constraints and Casimir equations. The later allow to write…
We study which bulk couplings contribute to the $S^3$ free energy $F(\mathfrak{m})$ of three-dimensional ${\cal N} = 2$ superconformal field theories with holographic duals, potentially deformed by boundary real-mass parameters $\mathfrak{m}$. In particular, we show that $F(\mathfrak{m})$ is independent of a large class of bulk couplings that include non-chiral F-terms and all D-terms. On the other hand, in general, $F(\mathfrak{m})$ does depend non-trivially on bulk chiral F-terms, such as prepotential interactions, and on bulk real-mass terms. These conclusions can be reached solely from pro…
Four-point super-conformal blocks for the N = 1 Neveu-Schwarz algebra are defined in terms of power series of the even super-projective invariant. Coefficients of these expansions are represented both as sums over poles in the "intermediate" conformal weight and as sums over poles in the central charge of the algebra. The residua of these poles are calculated in both cases. Closed recurrence relations for the block coefficients are derived.
We consider thermal plasmas in a large class of superconformal gauge theories described by a holographic dual geometry of the form $AdS_5\times M_5$. In particular, we demonstrate that all of the thermodynamic properties and hydrodynamic transport parameters for a large class of superconformal gauge theories exhibit a certain universality to leading order in the inverse 't Hooft coupling and $1/N_c$. In particular, we show that independent of the compactification geometry, the leading corrections are derived from the same five-dimensional effective supergravity action supplemented by a term qu…
We use AGT correspondence between N=2 SUSY Yang-Mills theory on ${\mathbb R}^4/{\mathbb Z}_2$ and two-dimensional CFT model with the algebra $ {\cal H} \oplus \hat{sl}(2)_2 \oplus \text{NSR}$ to obtain the explicit expressions for 4-point NSR conformal blocks including Ramond fields in terms of Nekrasov partition functions and correlation functions of $\hat{sl}(2)_2$ WZW model.
We develop a recursive approach to computing Neveu-Schwarz conformal blocks associated with n-punctured Riemann surfaces. This work generalizes the results of [1] obtained recently for the Virasoro algebra. The method is based on the analysis of the analytic properties of the superconformal blocks considered as functions of the central charge c. It consists of two main ingredients: the study of the singular behavior of the conformal blocks and the analysis of their asymptotic properties when c tends to infinity. The proposed construction is applicable for computing multi-point blocks in differ…
All superconformal quivers are shown to satisfy the relation c = a and are thus good candidates for being the field theory living on D3 branes probing CY singularities. We systematically study 3 block and 4 block chiral quivers which admit a superconformal fixed point of the RG equation. Most of these theories are known to arise as living on D3 branes at a singular CY manifold, namely complex cones over del Pezzo surfaces. In the process we find a procedure of getting a new superconformal quiver from a known one. This procedure is termed "shrinking" and, in the 3 block case, leads to the disco…
We construct 7-dimensional quantum field theories encoding the anomalies of conformal field theories with (2,0) supersymmetry in six dimensions. We explain how the conformal blocks of the (2,0) theories arise in this context. A result of independent interest is a detailed specification of the data required to define a (2,0) theory with topologically non-trivial spacetime and R-symmetry bundle.
We consider $\mathcal{N}=2$ superconformal quiver gauge theories in four dimensions and evaluate the chiral/anti-chiral correlators of single-trace operators. We show that it is convenient to form particular twisted and untwisted combinations of these operators suggested by the dual holographic description of the theory. The various twisted sectors are orthogonal and the correlators in each sector have always the same structure, as we show at the lowest orders in perturbation theory with Feynman diagrams. Using localization we then map the computation to a matrix model. In this way we are able…
We consider some aspects of counting BPS operators which are annihilated by two supercharges, in superconformal field theories. For non-zero coupling, the corresponding multi-variable partition functions can be written in terms of generating functions for vector partitions or their weighted generalisations. We derive asymptotics for the density of states for a wide class of such multi-variable partition functions. We also point out a particular factorisation property of the finite N partition functions. Finally, we discuss the concept of a limit curve arising from the large N partition functio…
Recently, Gaiotto, Strominger and Yin have proposed a holographic representation of the microstates of certain N=2 black holes as chiral primaries of a superconformal quantum mechanics living on D0-branes in the attractor geometry. We show that their proposal can be succesfully applied to `small' black holes which are dual to Dabholkar-Harvey states and have vanishing horizon area in the leading supergravity approximation. This note is a summary of hep-th/0505176 with S. Kim.
We study the chiral ring of four-dimensional superconformal field theories obtained by wrapping M5-branes on a complex curve inside a Calabi-Yau three-fold. We propose a field theoretic construction of all the theories found by Bah, Beem, Bobev and Wecht by introducing new building blocks, and prove several $\mathcal{N} = 1$ dualities featuring the latter. We match the central charges with those computed from the M5-brane anomaly polynomial, perform the counting of relevant operators and analyze unitarity bound violations. As a byproduct, we compute the exact dimension of "heavy operators" obt…
We study the holographic dual to $c$-extremization for 2d $(0,2)$ superconformal field theories (SCFTs) that have an AdS$_3$ dual realized in Type IIB with varying axio-dilaton, i.e. F-theory. M/F-duality implies that such AdS$_3$ solutions can be mapped to AdS$_2$ solutions in M-theory, which are holographically dual to superconformal quantum mechanics (SCQM), obtained by dimensional reduction of the 2d SCFTs. We analyze the corresponding map between holographic $c$-extremization in F-theory and $\mathcal{I}$-extremization in M-theory, where in general the latter receives corrections relative…
