Superstring Theory, Black Hole Physics and Quantum Gravity

最近，弦理论的研究取得了长足的进展，人们认识到超弦理论具有一个将非微扰效应与微扰效应联系起来的对偶对称网。出现的情况是，存在一个基本理论，M理论，即微扰地看起来像弦理论，但非微扰地具有非常丰富的结构，其中包括与孤子的微扰激发有关的对称性。另一个最近的发展是Maldacena猜想反de Sitterspace上的弦理论和这些空间边界上的规范场理论之间的等价性。这种ADS/CFT的等价性使引力反德西特组态的研究变得更加重要，因为它们为研究对粒子物理具有重要意义的量子规范场理论提供了工具。这一建议的主要重点是：a)在不同的时空维度上找到超对称引力背景的完整分类，并更好地理解ADS/CFT的对应以及几何和超对称之间的复杂关系。B)发展我们对弦理论背后的非微扰理论的理解，并将弦理论对引力物理、粒子物理和宇宙学的现象学含义的研究的新进展纳入其中。这一提议的更广泛的含义是，它将导致弦理论家和微分几何之间的合作。这项工作也将在贝鲁特大学的高等数学科学中心进行，该中心将成为中东科学家合作的主要中心。国家科学基础日记笔记Proposal：0703017 PI姓名：Sabra，Wafic从eJacket打印：02/28/07第1页，共1页

Recently,considerable progress has been made in the study of string theories.It has been realized that superstring theory has a web of duality symmetries relatingnonperturbative effects to perturbative ones. The picture emerging is that there exists afundamental theory, M-theory, that perturbatively, looks like string theory, butnonperturbatively has a very rich structure which includes symmetries relatingperturbative excitations to solitons. Another recent developmenthas been Maldacena's conjectured equivalence between string theory on anti-de Sitterspaces and gauge field theories living on the boundary of these spaces. This ADS/CFTequivalence gave more importance to the study of gravitational anti-de Sitterconfigurations as they provide a tool to the study of quantum gauge field theoriesimportant for particle physics. The main focus of this proposal is: a) to finda complete classification of supersymmetric gravitational backgrounds in variousspacetime dimensions and to understand better the ADS/CFT correspondence and theintricate relation between geometry and supersymmetry. b) to develop ourunderstanding of the nonperturbative theory underlying string theory, and incorporatethe new developments in the study of the phenomenological implications of string theoryto gravitational physics, particle physics and cosmology. The broader implications ofthis proposal are that it will lead to collaboration between string theorists and differentialgeometry. Also the work will take place at the Center for Advanced mathematicalScience at the University of Beirut which will become a Major Center for collaborationsamong scientists in the Middle East.NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATIONDiary NoteProposal:0703017 PI Name:Sabra, WaficPrinted from eJacket: 02/28/07 Page 1 of 1