More Superstrings from Supergravity

TL;DR

This paper characterizes six-dimensional little string theories using supergravity, deriving dual AdS_3 geometries from matrix theory descriptions of M5-branes to provide a complete holographic understanding of these fixed point theories.

Contribution

It derives smooth supergravity solutions involving AdS_3 that describe the fixed points of six-dimensional little string theories, linking matrix theory and supergravity.

Findings

Supergravity solutions are smooth and involve AdS_3.

These solutions provide a complete description of the fixed point theories.

The work supports the AdS/CFT correspondence for these theories.

Abstract

The four six-dimensional ``little string'' theories are all described in the infinite momentum frame (IMF) as matrix theories by non-trivial 1+1 dimensional infra-red fixed points. We characterize these fixed points using supergravity. Starting from the matrix theory definition of M5-branes, we derive an associated dual supergravity description of the fixed point theories, arising as the near horizon geometry of certain brane configurations. These supergravity solutions are all smooth, and involve three dimensional Anti-de Sitter space AdS_3. They therefore provide a complete description of the fixed point theories, and hence the IMF little string theories, if the AdS/CFT correspondence holds.