On the marginal deformations of general (0,2) non-linear sigma-models

TL;DR

This paper investigates the marginal deformations of (0,2) non-linear sigma-models, providing insights into the classical moduli space of heterotic string compactifications from a world-sheet perspective.

Contribution

It characterizes the marginal deformations of (0,2) sigma-models at leading order, connecting world-sheet analysis with the moduli space of heterotic string compactifications.

Findings

Identifies conditions for marginal deformations in (0,2) models

Provides a world-sheet perspective on the moduli space

Contributes to understanding of heterotic string compactifications

Abstract

In this note we explore the possible marginal deformations of general (0,2) non-linear sigma-models, which arise as descriptions of the weakly-coupled (large radius) limits of four-dimensional $\mathcal{N}= 1$ compactifications of the heterotic string, to lowest order in $\alpha'$ and first order in conformal perturbation theory. The results shed light from the world-sheet perspective on the classical moduli space of such compactifications. This is a contribution to the proceedings of String-Math 2012.