String Theory in a Nutshell

Description

String Theory in a Nutshell is the definitive introduction to modern string theory. Written by one of the world’s leading authorities on the subject, this concise and accessible book starts with basic definitions and guides readers from classic topics to the most exciting frontiers of research today. It covers perturbative string theory, the unity of string interactions, black holes and their microscopic entropy, the AdS/CFT correspondence and its applications, matrix model tools for string theory, and more. It also includes 600 exercises and serves as a self-contained guide to the literature. This fully updated edition features an entirely new chapter on flux compactifications in string theory, and the chapter on AdS/CFT has been substantially expanded by adding many applications to diverse topics. In addition, the discussion of conformal field theory has been extensively revised to make it more student-friendly. The essential one-volume reference for students and researchers in theoretical high-energy physics Now fully expanded and revised Provides expanded coverage of AdS/CFT and its applications, namely the holographic renormalization group, holographic theories for Yang-Mills and QCD, nonequilibrium thermal physics, finite density physics, and entanglement entropy Ideal for mathematicians and physicists specializing in theoretical cosmology, QCD, and novel approaches to condensed matter systems An online illustration package is available to professors Contents Preface to the Second Edition Preface to the First Edition Abbreviations 1 Introduction 2 Classical String Theory 3 Quantization of Bosonic Strings 4 Conformal Field Theory 5 Scattering Amplitudes and Vertex Operators 6 Strings in Background Fields 7 Superstrings and Supersymmetry 8 D-Branes 9 Compactification and Supersymmetry Breaking 10 Loop Corrections to String Effective Couplings 11 Duality Connections and Nonperturbative Effects 12 Compactifications with Fluxes 13 Black Holes and Entropy in String Theory 14 The Bulk/Boundary (Holographic) Correspondence 15 Applications of the Holographic Correspondence 16 String Theory and Matrix Models Appendixes Appendix A Two-Dimensional Complex Geometry Appendix B Differential Forms Appendix C Conformal Transformations and Curvature Appendix D Theta and Other Elliptic Functions Appendix E Toroidal Lattice Sums Appendix F Toroidal Kaluza-Klein Reduction Appendix G The Reissner-Nordström Black Hole Appendix H Electric-Magnetic Duality in D = 4 Appendix I Supersymmetric Actions in Ten and Eleven Dimensions Appendix J N=14, 24, Four-Dimensional Supergravity Coupled to Matter Appendix K BPS Multiplets in Four Dimensions Appendix L The Geometry of Anti-de Sitter Space Bibliography Index