D-brane instantons and matrix models

TL;DR

This paper demonstrates how matrix model techniques can be used to perturbatively compute D-brane instanton effects, offering new insights into stringy instantons and their relation to supergroup instantons.

Contribution

It introduces a novel approach to calculate D-brane instanton effects using matrix models, connecting stringy instantons with residual instantons of higgsed supergroups.

Findings

Matrix model techniques can compute D-brane instanton effects perturbatively.

Stringy multi-instanton effects can be calculated using this method.

D-brane instantons are interpreted as residual instantons of higgsed supergroups.

Abstract

We point out that in some situations it is possible to use matrix model techniques a la Dijkgraaf-Vafa to perturbatively compute D-brane instanton effects. This provides an explanation in terms of stringy instantons of the results in hep-th/0311181. We check this proposal in some simple scenarios. We point out some interesting consequences of this observation, such as the fact that it gives a perturbative way of computing stringy multi-instanton effects. It also provides a further interpretation of D-brane instantons as residual instantons of higgsed supergroups.