Five--Branes and Supersymmetry Breaking in M--Theory

TL;DR

This paper investigates supersymmetry breaking mechanisms in heterotic M-theory with five-branes, analyzing non-perturbative effects, threshold corrections, and implications for soft supersymmetry breaking parameters.

Contribution

It provides a detailed analysis of supersymmetry breaking via gaugino condensation in heterotic M-theory with five-branes, including modifications to the superpotential and matter Kähler potential.

Findings

Supersymmetry remains broken by a global mechanism.

The non-perturbative superpotential has a standard form with threshold corrections.

The form of the matter Kähler potential is determined.

Abstract

Supersymmetry breaking via gaugino condensation is studied in vacua of heterotic M-theory with five-branes. We show that supersymmetry is still broken by a global mechanism and that the non-perturbative superpotential takes the standard form. When expressed in terms of low energy fields, a modification arises due to a threshold correction in the gauge kinetic function that depends on five-brane moduli. We also determine the form of the low energy matter field Kahler potential. These results are used to discuss the soft supersymmetry breaking parameters, in particular the question of universality.