Gauged Double Field Theory

TL;DR

This paper establishes the conditions for gauge invariance in Double Field Theory, explores its compactifications on twisted tori, and derives the resulting gauged theories, including applications to heterotic strings and supergravities.

Contribution

It provides necessary and sufficient conditions for gauge invariance in DFT and develops a framework for gauged DFT via duality twists, extending previous constraints.

Findings

Weak and strong constraints are sufficient but not necessary for gauge invariance.

Derived the effective gauged DFT from twisted compactifications.

Connected gauged DFT to heterotic strings and supergravities.

Abstract

We find necessary and sufficient conditions for gauge invariance of the action of Double Field Theory (DFT) as well as closure of the algebra of gauge symmetries. The so-called weak and strong constraints are sufficient to satisfy them, but not necessary. We then analyze compactifications of DFT on twisted double tori satisfying the consistency conditions. The effective theory is a Gauged DFT where the gaugings come from the duality twists. The action, bracket, global symmetries, gauge symmetries and their closure are computed by twisting their analogs in the higher dimensional DFT. The non-Abelian heterotic string and lower dimensional gauged supergravities are particular examples of Gauged DFT.