Electroweak symmetry breaking in TeV-scale string models

TL;DR

This paper explores a TeV-scale string theory model where electroweak symmetry breaking occurs through one-loop radiative corrections, linking string-derived Higgs and quark fields, and analyzing the resulting Higgs mass corrections.

Contribution

It introduces a novel string-based framework for electroweak symmetry breaking via radiative corrections in non-supersymmetric orbifold models with D3-branes.

Findings

One-loop corrections can generate negative Higgs mass squared.

Higgs and quark fields are identified with open string modes on D3-branes.

Qualitative analysis suggests the viability of symmetry breaking in this setup.

Abstract

We propose a scenario of the electroweak symmetry breaking by one-loop radiative corrections in a class of string models with D3-branes at non-supersymmetric orbifold singularities with the string scale in TeV region. As a test example, we consider a simple model based on a D3-brane at locally C^3/Z_6 orbifold singularity, and the electroweak Higgs doublet fields are identified with the massless bosonic modes of the open string on that D3-brane. They have Yukawa couplings with three generations of left-handed quarks and right-handed up-type quarks which are identified with the massless fermionic modes of the open string on the D3-brane. We calculate the one-loop correction to the Higgs mass due to the non-supersymmetric string spectrum and interactions, and qualitatively suggest that the negative mass squared can be generated. The problems which must be solved to proceed quantitative calculations are pointed out.