Supergravity and "New" Six-Dimensional Gauge Theories

TL;DR

This paper explores supergravity duals of six-dimensional gauge theories on five-branes, revealing conditions for their validity, phase structures, and new dual descriptions involving multiple light D-brane excitations.

Contribution

It provides a detailed analysis of supergravity duals for six-dimensional theories, including the role of the theta parameter and new dual descriptions with electric RR fields.

Findings

Rational theta parameter is necessary for low-energy gauge theory validity.

Irrational theta leads to strongly coupled string descriptions.

Constructs supergravity duals with multiple light D-brane excitations.

Abstract

In the first part of this letter, we analyse the supergravity dual descriptions of six-dimensional field theories realized on the worldvolume of (p,q) five-branes (OD5 theory). We show that in order for the low-energy gauge theory description to be valid the theta parameter must be rational. Irrational values of theta require a strongly coupled string description of the system at low-energy. We discuss the phase structure and deduce some properties of these theories. In the second part we construct and study the supergravity description of NS5-branes with two electric RR field, which provides a dual description of six-dimensional theories with several light open D-brane excitations.