Kaluza-Klein reduction on a maximally non-Riemannian space is moduli-free

TL;DR

This paper introduces a new Kaluza-Klein reduction scheme on maximally non-Riemannian spaces, which eliminates moduli and unifies supergravity and Yang-Mills theories within a higher-dimensional Double Field Theory framework.

Contribution

It presents a novel reduction approach on non-Riemannian spaces that removes moduli and connects heterotic string theory to higher-dimensional Double Field Theory.

Findings

Internal space prevents graviscalar moduli.

Unification of supergravity and Yang-Mills theory in moduli-free DFT.

Heterotic string theory has a higher-dimensional non-Riemannian origin.

Abstract

We propose a novel Kaluza-Klein scheme which assumes the internal space to be maximally non-Riemannian, meaning that no Riemannian metric can be defined for any subspace. Its description is only possible through Double Field Theory but not within supergravity. We spell out the corresponding Scherk-Schwarz twistable Kaluza--Klein ansatz, and point out that the internal space prevents rigidly any graviscalar moduli. Plugging the same ansatz into higher-dimensional pure Double Field Theory and also to a known doubled-yet-gauged string action, we recover heterotic supergravity as well as heterotic worldsheet action. In this way, we show that 1) supergravity and Yang-Mills theory can be unified into higher-dimensional pure Double Field Theory, free of moduli, and 2) heterotic string theory may have a higher-dimensional non-Riemannian origin.