We present a method to construct the extended Kähler cone of any Calabi-Yau threefold by using Gopakumar-Vafa invariants to identify all geometric phases that are related by flops or Weyl reflections. In this way we obtain the Kähler moduli spaces of all favorable Calabi-Yau threefold hypersurfaces with h1,1 ≤ 4, including toric and non-toric phases. In this setting we perform an explicit test of the Weak Gravity Conjecture by using the Gopakumar-Vafa invariants to count BPS states. All of our examples satisfy the tower/sublattice WGC, and in fact they even satisfy the stronger lattice WGC.
more »
« less
The Weak Gravity Conjecture and BPS Particles
Abstract Motivated by the Weak Gravity Conjecture, we uncover an intricate interplay between black holes, BPS particle counting, and Calabi‐Yau geometry in five dimensions. In particular, we point out that extremal BPS black holes exist only in certain directions in the charge lattice, and we argue that these directions fill out a cone that is dual to the cone of effective divisors of the Calabi‐Yau threefold. The tower and sublattice versions of the Weak Gravity Conjecture require an infinite tower of BPS particles in these directions, and therefore imply purely geometric conjectures requiring the existence of infinite towers of holomorphic curves in every direction within the dual of the cone of effective divisors. We verify these geometric conjectures in a number of examples by computing Gopakumar‐Vafa invariants.
more »
« less
- Award ID(s):
- 1914934
- PAR ID:
- 10448132
- Publisher / Repository:
- Wiley Blackwell (John Wiley & Sons)
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- Fortschritte der Physik
- Volume:
- 69
- Issue:
- 11-12
- ISSN:
- 0015-8208
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
More Like this
-
-
The Sharpened Distance Conjecture and Tower Scalar Weak Gravity Conjecture are closely related but distinct conjectures, neither one implying the other. Motivated by examples, I propose that both are consequences of two new conjectures: 1. The infinite distance geodesics passing through an arbitrary point ϕ in the moduli space populate a dense set of directions in the tangent space at ϕ. 2. Along any infinite distance geodesic, there exists a tower of particles whose scalar-charge-to-mass ratio (–∇log m) projection everywhere along the geodesic is greater than or equal to 1/√(d-2). I perform several nontrivial tests of these new conjectures in maximal and half-maximal supergravity examples. I also use the Tower Scalar Weak Gravity Conjecture to conjecture a sharp bound on exponentially heavy towers that accompany infinite distance limits.more » « less
-
A bstract We study Euclidean D3-branes wrapping divisors D in Calabi-Yau orientifold compactifications of type IIB string theory. Witten’s counting of fermion zero modes in terms of the cohomology of the structure sheaf $$ {\mathcal{O}}_D $$ O D applies when D is smooth, but we argue that effective divisors of Calabi-Yau threefolds typically have singularities along rational curves. We generalize the counting of fermion zero modes to such singular divisors, in terms of the cohomology of the structure sheaf $$ {\mathcal{O}}_{\overline{D}} $$ O D ¯ of the normalization $$ \overline{D} $$ D ¯ of D . We establish this by detailing compactifications in which the singularities can be unwound by passing through flop transitions, giving a physical incarnation of the normalization process. Analytically continuing the superpotential through the flops, we find that singular divisors whose normalizations are rigid can contribute to the superpotential: specifically, $$ {h}_{+}^{\bullet}\left({\mathcal{O}}_{\overline{D}}\right)=\left(1,0,0\right) $$ h + • O D ¯ = 1 0 0 and $$ {h}_{-}^{\bullet}\left({\mathcal{O}}_{\overline{D}}\right)=\left(0,0,0\right) $$ h − • O D ¯ = 0 0 0 give a sufficient condition for a contribution. The examples that we present feature infinitely many isomorphic geometric phases, with corresponding infinite-order monodromy groups Γ. We use the action of Γ on effective divisors to determine the exact effective cones, which have infinitely many generators. The resulting nonperturbative superpotentials are Jacobi theta functions, whose modular symmetries suggest the existence of strong-weak coupling dualities involving inversion of divisor volumes.more » « less
-
A bstract Calabi-Yau threefolds with infinitely many flops to isomorphic manifolds have an extended Kähler cone made up from an infinite number of individual Kähler cones. These cones are related by reflection symmetries across flop walls. We study the implications of this cone structure for mirror symmetry, by considering the instanton part of the prepotential in Calabi-Yau threefolds. We show that such isomorphic flops across facets of the Kähler cone boundary give rise to symmetry groups isomorphic to Coxeter groups. In the dual Mori cone, non-flopping curve classes that are identified under these groups have the same Gopakumar-Vafa invariants. This leads to instanton prepotentials invariant under Coxeter groups, which we make manifest by introducing appropriate invariant functions. For some cases, these functions can be expressed in terms of theta functions whose appearance can be linked to an elliptic fibration structure of the Calabi-Yau manifold.more » « less
-
We study towers of light particles that appear in infinite-distance limits of moduli spaces of 9-dimensional 𝒩=1 string theories, some of which notably feature decompactification limits with running string coupling. The lightest tower in such decompactification limits consists of the non-BPS Kaluza-Klein modes of Type I′ string theory, whose masses depend nontrivially on the moduli of the theory. We work out the moduli-dependence by explicit computation, finding that despite the running decompactification the Distance Conjecture remains satisfied with an exponential decay rate ⍺ ≥ 1/√(d-2) in accordance with the sharpened Distance Conjecture. The related sharpened Convex Hull Scalar Weak Gravity Conjecture also passes stringent tests. Our results non-trivially test the Emergent String Conjecture, while highlighting the important subtlety that decompactifcation can lead to a running solution rather than to a higher-dimensional vacuum.more » « less
An official website of the United States government
