Home Registration Contacts Participants Lectures Videos Schedule
 

Introduction to Superstring Theory I

Carlo Angelantonj - University of Torino, Torino

 
  The aim of the course is to provide a brief introduction to the construction of consistent (super)string vacua in D=26 (D=10). Toroidal and orbifold compactifications as well as D-branes will be discussed. The plan of the lectures is:
 
    1. Light-cone quantisation of the bosonic string. The one-loop partition function for closed strings.
    2. Circle compactification: T-duality and gauge symmetry enhancement.
    3. Orbifold compactifications.
    4. Light-cone quantisation of the fermionic string. The consistency of the one-loop partition function for closed strings. Type IIA/IIB and heterotic strings in D=10.
    5. D-branes and orientifold constructions.
 
 
 
  Standard references:
 
    M.B. Green, J.H. Schwarz and E. Witten, Superstring Theory (Cambridge University Press)
    J. Polchinski, String Theory (Cambridge University press)
    E. Kiritsis, String Theory in a Nutshell (Princeton University Press)
    K. Becker, M. Becker and J.H. Schwarz, String Theory and M-Theory (Cambridge University Press)
    R. Blumenhagen, D. Luest and S. Theisen, Basic Concepts of String Theory (Springer)
  Useful review:
 
    C. Angelantonj and A. Sagnotti, Open Strings, Phys. Rep. 371 (2002) 1-150 [arXiv: hep-th/0204089]