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String field theory (SFT) is a formalism in string theory in which the dynamics of relativistic strings is reformulated in the language of quantum field theory. This is accomplished at the level of perturbation theory by finding a collection of vertices for joining and splitting strings, as well as string propagators, that give a Feynman diagram-like expansion for string scattering amplitudes. In most string field theories, this expansion is encoded by a classical action found by second-quantizing the free string and adding interaction terms. As is usually the case in second quantization, a classical field configuration of the second-quantized theory is given by a wave function in the original theory. In the case of string field theory, this implies that a classical configuration, usually called the string field, is given by an element of the free string Fock space.
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Montonen–Olive duality or electric–magnetic duality is the oldest known example of strong–weak duality or S-duality according to current terminology. It generalizes the electro-magnetic symmetry of Maxwell's equations by stating that magnetic monopoles, which are usually viewed as emergent quasiparticles that are "composite", can in fact be viewed as "elementary" quantized particles with electrons playing the reverse role of "composite" topological solitons; the viewpoints are equivalent and the situation dependent on the duality. It was later proven to hold true when dealing with a N = 4 supersymmetric Yang–Mills theory. It is named after Finnish physicist Claus Montonen and British physicist David Olive after they proposed the idea in their academic paper Magnetic monopoles as gauge particles? where they state:
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In physics, a renormalon is a particular source of divergence seen in perturbative approximations to quantum field theories (QFT). When a formally divergent series in a QFT is summed using Borel summation, the associated Borel transform of the series can have singularities as a function of the complex transform parameter. The renormalon is a possible type of singularity arising in this complex Borel plane, and is a counterpart of an instanton singularity. Associated with such singularities, renormalon contributions are discussed in the context of quantum chromodynamics (QCD) and usually have the power-like form as functions of the momentum . They are cited against the usual logarithmic effects like .
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In theoretical physics, 3D mirror symmetry is a version of mirror symmetry in 3-dimensional gauge theories with N=4 supersymmetry, or 8 supercharges. It was first proposed by Kenneth Intriligator and Nathan Seiberg, in their 1996 paper "Mirror symmetry in three-dimensional gauge theories", as a relation between pairs of 3-dimensional gauge theories, such that the Coulomb branch of the moduli space of one is the Higgs branch of the moduli space of the other. It was demonstrated using D-brane cartoons by Amihay Hanany and Edward Witten 4 months later, where they found that it is a consequence of S-duality in type IIB string theory.
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References
- ↑ Paul S. Aspinwall at the Mathematics Genealogy Project
- ↑ Aspinwall, P. S. (1998). "String theory and duality". Proceedings of the ICM. Doc.math.j.DMV. Vol. 2. pp. 229–238. arXiv: math/9809004 . Bibcode:1998math......9004A.
