Lie Groups, Calabi-Yau Threefolds, and F-Theory

TL;DR

This paper explores how the geometry of elliptic Calabi-Yau threefolds determines gauge symmetries and matter content in F-theory compactifications, providing general computational rules and revealing novel phenomena related to monodromy and 2-brane wrappings.

Contribution

It introduces general rules for computing hypermultiplet spectra in F-theory vacua, including non-simply-laced groups, and uncovers new effects of monodromy on 2-cycle wrappings.

Findings

Derived intersection-theoretic formulas for gauge algebra and matter representations.

Established computational rules for hypermultiplet spectra in various F-theory vacua.

Discovered novel 2-brane wrapping constraints due to monodromy effects.

Abstract

The F-theory vacuum constructed from an elliptic Calabi-Yau threefold with section yields an effective six-dimensional theory. The Lie algebra of the gauge sector of this theory and its representation on the space of massless hypermultiplets are shown to be determined by the intersection theory of the homology of the Calabi-Yau threefold. (Similar statements hold for M-theory and the type IIA string compactified on the threefold, where there is also a dependence on the expectation values of the Ramond-Ramond fields.) We describe general rules for computing the hypermultiplet spectrum of any F-theory vacuum, including vacua with non-simply-laced gauge groups. The case of monodromy acting on a curve of A_even singularities is shown to be particularly interesting and leads to some unexpected rules for how 2-branes are allowed to wrap certain 2-cycles. We also review the peculiar numerical predictions for the geometry of elliptic Calabi-Yau threefolds with section which arise from anomaly cancellation in six dimensions.