Gauged supergravity

Gauged supergravity
Name	Gauged supergravity
Field	Theoretical physics, Mathematical physics
Related	Supergravity, String theory, M-theory

Gauged supergravity is a class of field theories that extend supergravity by promoting global internal symmetries to local gauge symmetries, thereby coupling supergravity multiplets to non-abelian gauge fields and generating scalar potentials. These theories play a central role in connecting string theory and M-theory compactifications to lower-dimensional effective descriptions, informing studies of anti-de Sitter space, cosmology, and the AdS/CFT correspondence. Key constructions originate from efforts by groups including researchers at Princeton University, Cambridge University, and institutions such as CERN and the Max Planck Institute for Gravitational Physics.

Introduction

Gauged supergravity emerged from attempts to reconcile local supersymmetry with non-abelian gauge interactions in works associated with teams at Imperial College London, Queen Mary University of London, and collaborations involving researchers at Institute for Advanced Study. Early milestones relate to formulations influenced by studies at Bell Labs and seminars at Harvard University and MIT, connecting to results discussed at the Solvay Conference and Strings Conference series. The gauging procedure modifies the Noether procedure in supergravity and was advanced in contexts involving groups like E7, SO(8), SL(2,R), and researchers from Caltech and Stanford University.

Mathematical Structure and Formulation

The mathematical framework leverages structures studied at Institute for Advanced Study and in mathematics departments at Princeton University and University of Cambridge, including Lie algebra theory of E8 and SO(p,q), coset space geometry from work at ETH Zurich, and differential geometry developments traceable to scholars at IHES. Theories use gauging of isometry groups on scalar manifolds modeled on cosets such as E7(7)/SU(8), SL(2,R)/SO(2), and SO(n,1)/SO(n), with connections to representation theory researched at University of Oxford and University of Paris. The construction introduces embedding tensors studied in collaborations at DAMTP and Max Planck Institute, which parameterize consistent deformations and were discussed at workshops at KITP and Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics. Supersymmetry variations, closure of the superalgebra, and consistency conditions reflect techniques developed in seminars at Yale University and Columbia University.

Examples and Classification

Prominent examples include four-dimensional SO(8) gauged supergravity originally examined by groups around University of Cambridge and later reanalyzed in work involving Imperial College London and CERN. Five-dimensional gauged models with SU(2) and U(1), and seven-dimensional constructions with SO(5) gauge groups, were elaborated by collaborators at Rutgers University and University of California, Berkeley. Classification efforts connect to exceptional groups such as E7, E6, and E8 studied at MPI-MIS and influenced by mathematics at Sorbonne University. Lower-dimensional gauged supergravities in three dimensions exploit structures from University of Bonn and Humboldt University of Berlin and include Chern–Simons terms investigated at Universität Hamburg. Notable specific models are tied to research programs at UCL, Imperial College, Osaka University, and Kavli Institute for Theoretical Physics.

Relation to Ungauged Supergravity and Compactifications

Gauged theories arise from compactifications discussed by groups at University of Tokyo, University of California, Santa Barbara, and University of Chicago where flux compactifications on manifolds such as S^7, S^5, Calabi–Yau manifolds, and G2 holonomy spaces produce lower-dimensional gauged actions. The relationship to ungauged supergravity traces through dimensional reduction techniques developed at Brandeis University and Tokyo Institute of Technology, and orbifold/orientifold constructions studied by teams at University of Pennsylvania and Brown University. Duality symmetries like T-duality and U-duality, examined at Rutgers University and CEA Saclay, play roles in mapping ungauged to gauged sectors, with tools from generalized geometry developed at IHES and MPI Bonn.

Applications in String Theory and AdS/CFT

Gauged supergravity provides effective descriptions for anti-de Sitter compactifications central to the AdS/CFT correspondence formulated by researchers at IAS and Princeton University. Holographic duals for conformal field theories studied at MIT, Columbia University, and Yale University often employ solutions of gauged supergravity such as domain walls, black holes, and RG flow geometries analyzed at CERN and Perimeter Institute. Specific applications include modeling of N=8 and N=4 supersymmetric backgrounds investigated by groups at University of Cambridge, Harvard University, and Stanford University and the study of consistent truncations related to type IIB supergravity and eleven-dimensional supergravity by teams at Caltech and KITP.

Phenomenological Implications and Cosmology

In cosmology, gauged supergravity constructions inform models of inflation, de Sitter vacua, and moduli stabilization developed at Princeton University, Stanford University, and University of Cambridge. Studies of metastable vacua, uplift mechanisms, and landscape statistics involve collaborations with researchers at CERN and Oxford University. Connections to particle phenomenology via spontaneous supersymmetry breaking and soft terms touch on work at ICTP, DESY, and University of Michigan. Models inspired by gauged supergravity have been explored in contexts tied to WMAP and Planck Collaboration data, with theoretical input from groups at Universidade de São Paulo and University of Toronto.

Open Problems and Research Directions

Active research directions pursued at Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics, KITP, MPIWG, and IHES include classification of all consistent gaugings using embedding tensor methods, construction of stable de Sitter vacua, precision holography for non-conformal duals, and uplift procedures to ten- and eleven-dimensional origins. Efforts toward relating gauged supergravity to swampland conjectures engage researchers at Princeton University, Rutgers University, and University of Oxford. Numerical and analytic studies of black hole microstates, as well as applications to condensed matter systems via holography, involve collaborations at University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, Duke University, and University of Amsterdam. The subject continues to evolve with workshops at Simons Foundation, Newton Institute, and Kavli Institute fostering developments.

Category:Supergravity