Princeton University High Energy Theory Seminar

Abstract:  In gauge theories with Chern-Simons interactions, the Gauss law -- the requirement that physical states be gauge invariant -- implies that the quantum wavefunction is naturally a section of a nontrivial line bundle over the space of fields. Closely analogous structures govern the properly quantized Chern-Simons term for the C-field in M-theory (or more precisely, in its low-energy effective theory, i.e., eleven-dimensional supergravity).

The gauge equivalence class of the C-field is a twisted differential cohomology class, a notion I will introduce and explain. The corresponding Gauss law for the C-field involves a nontrivial lifting of gauge transformations, naturally described in the language of differential cohomology. This allows a formulation in AdS/CFT of the M-theory partition function in terms of conformal blocks of the six-dimensional (2,0) fivebrane theory. This talk is based on joint work in progress with G. W. Moore.