Heterotic M2-branes

TL;DR

This paper constructs a non-abelian worldvolume theory for N M2-branes on an orbifold, revealing a connection to heterotic strings and E8 gauge symmetry, extending Horava-Witten analysis to M2-branes.

Contribution

It introduces a new action for N M2-branes on S^1/Z_2 with anomaly cancellation, linking M2-branes to heterotic string theory and E8 symmetry.

Findings

Constructed M2-brane action on S^1/Z_2.

Demonstrated anomaly cancellation with chiral fermions.

Connected low-energy limit to heterotic string worldsheet theory.

Abstract

We construct the action for N M2-branes on $S^1/{Z}_2$. The resulting theory has a gauge anomaly but this can be cancelled if the two fixed point planes each support 8 chiral Fermions in the fundamental of U(N). Taking the low energy limit leads to the worldsheet theory of N free heterotic strings whose quantization induces an $E_8$ spacetime gauge symmetry on each fixed point plane. Thus this paper presents a non-abelian worldvolume analogue of the classic Horava-Witten analysis.