Conformal perturbation theory from open string field theory

TL;DR

This paper develops a method using open string field theory to construct classical solutions that facilitate conformal perturbation theory for boundary conditions in 2D conformal field theories, enabling easier analysis of boundary deformations.

Contribution

It introduces a novel approach to boundary conformal perturbation theory by leveraging open string field theory to construct classical solutions, simplifying the analysis of boundary deformations.

Findings

Constructed classical solutions from open string field theory.

Calculated boundary degeneracy to next-to-leading order.

Provided a new framework for analyzing boundary conditions in 2D CFTs.

Abstract

Conformal boundary conditions in two-dimensional conformal field theories are still mostly an uncharted territory. Even less is known about the relevant boundary deformations that connect them. A natural approach to the problem is via conformal perturbation theory, which however becomes quickly intractable. Using the formalism of open string field theory, we construct the corresponding classical solution, from which we can easily extract the boundary theory data. As a simple illustration we calculate the boundary degeneracy $g$ to next-to-leading order for a generic theory.