Gauge Anomalies Research Articles

Weyl semimetal and topological numbers

Generalized Dirac monopoles in momentum space are constructed in even [Formula: see text] dimensions from the Weyl Hamiltonian in terms of Green’s functions. In [Formula: see text] dimensions, the (unit) charge of the monopole is equal to both the winding number and the Chern number, expressed as the integral of the Berry curvature. Based on the equivalence of the Chern and winding numbers, a chirally coupled and Lorentz invariant field theory action is studied for the Weyl semimetal phase. At the one loop order, the effective action yields both the chiral magnetic effect and the anomalous Hall effect. The Chern number appears as a coefficient in the conductivity, thus emphasizes the role of topology. The anomalous contribution of chiral fermions to transport phenomena is reflected as the gauge anomaly with the Pfaffian invariant [Formula: see text]. Relevance of monopoles and Chern numbers for the semiclassical chiral kinetic theory is also discussed.

Algebraic cycles and local anomalies in F-theory

We introduce a set of identities in the cohomology ring of elliptic fibrations which are equivalent to the cancellation of gauge and mixed gauge-gravitational anomalies in F-theory compactifications to four and six dimensions. The identities consist in (co)homological relations between complex codimension-two cycles. The same set of relations, once evaluated on elliptic Calabi-Yau three-folds and four-folds, is shown to universally govern the structure of anomalies and their Green-Schwarz cancellation in six- and four-dimensional F-theory vacua, respectively. We furthermore conjecture that these relations hold not only within the cohomology ring, but even at the level of the Chow ring, i.e. as relations among codimension-two cycles modulo rational equivalence. We verify this conjecture in non-trivial examples with Abelian and non-Abelian gauge groups factors. Apart from governing the structure of local anomalies, the identities in the Chow ring relate different types of gauge backgrounds on elliptically fibred Calabi-Yau four-folds.

String-inspired special grand unification

We discuss a grand unified theory (GUT) based on an $SO(32)$ GUT gauge group broken to its subgroups including a special subgroup. In the $SO(32)$ GUT on six-dimensional (6D) orbifold space $M^4\times T^2/\mathbb{Z}_2$, one generation of the SM fermions can be embedded into a 6D bulk Weyl fermion in the $SO(32)$ vector representation. We show that for a three generation model, all the 6D and 4D gauge anomalies in the bulk and on the fixed points are canceled out without exotic chiral fermions at low energies.

Dark Energy, QCD Axion, and Trans-Planckian-Inflaton Decay Constant

Pseudoscalars appear frequently in particle spectra. They can be light if they appear as pseudo-Goldstone bosons from some spontaneously broken global symmetries with the decay constant f. Since any global symmetry is broken at least by quantum gravitational effects, all pseudoscalars are massive. The mass scale of a pseudoscalar is determined by the spontaneous symmetry breaking scale f of the corresponding global symmetry and the explicit breaking terms in the effective potential. The explicit breaking terms can arise from anomaly terms with some non-Abelian gauge groups among which the best-known example is the potential of the QCD axion. Even if there is no breaking terms from gauge anomalies, there can be explicit breaking terms in the potential in which case the leading term suppressed by f determines the pseudoscalar mass scale. If the breaking term is extremely small and the decay constant is trans-Planckian, the corresponding pseudoscalar can be a candidate for a quintessential axion. In the other extreme that the breaking scales are large, still the pseudo-Goldstone boson mass scales are in general smaller than the decay constants. In such a case, still the potential of the pseudo-Goldstone boson at the grand unification scale is sufficiently flat near the top of the potential that it can be a good candidate for an inflationary model. We review these ideas in the bosonic collective motion framework.

Naturally realized two dark Z ’s near the electroweak scale

Chiral representations are the key to obtaining light fermions from some ultraviolet completed theories. The well-known chiral example is one family set of 15 chiral fields in the standard model. We find a new chiral theory ${\mathrm{SU}(2)}_{\mathrm{dark}}\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}\mathrm{U}(1{)}_{Q}$ with 16 chiral fields, which does not have any gauge and gravitational anomalies. The group ${\mathrm{SU}(2)}_{\mathrm{dark}}\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}\mathrm{U}(1{)}_{Q}$ may belong to the dark sector, and we present a derivation of the spectrum from the ${\mathrm{E}}_{8}\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}{\mathrm{E}}_{8}^{\ensuremath{'}}$ heterotic string. Necessarily, there appear two degrees at low energy: two dark-${Z}^{\ensuremath{'}}$'s, or a dark-${Z}^{\ensuremath{'}}$ plus a dark photon. Being chiral, there is a chance to probe this theory at TeV accelerators. Since the model belongs to the dark sector, the way to probe it is through the kinetic mixing.

Special grand unification

We discuss new-type grand unified theories based on grand unified groups broken to their special subgroups as well as their regular subgroups. In the framework, when we construct four-dimensional (4D) chiral gauge theories, i.e., the Standard Model (SM), 4D gauge anomaly cancellation restricts the minimal number of generations of the 4D SM Weyl fermions. We show that in a six-dimensional (6D) $SU(16)$ gauge theory on $M^4\times T^2/\mathbb{Z}_2$ one generation of the SM fermions can be embedded into a 6D bulk Weyl fermion. For the model including three chiral generations of the SM fermions, the 6D and 4D gauge anomalies on the bulk and fixed points are canceled out without exotic 4D chiral fermions.

Gauge anomalies in Lorentz-violating QED

In this work we study the issue of gauge anomalies in Lorentz-violating QED. To do so, we opt to use the Becchi-Rouet-Stora-Tyutin formalism within the algebraic renormalization approach, reducing our study to a cohomology problem. Since this approach is independent of the renormalization scheme, the results obtained here are expected to be general. We find that the Lorentz-violating QED is free of gauge anomalies to all orders in perturbation theory.

A new B − L model without right-handed neutrinos

We propose and study a novel extension of the Standard Model based on the B-L gauge symmetry that can account for dark matter and neutrino masses. In this model, right-handed neutrinos are absent and the gauge anomalies are canceled instead by four chiral fermions with fractional B-L charges. After the breaking of $U(1)_{B-L}$, these fermions arrange themselves into two Dirac particles, the lightest of which is automatically stable and plays the role of the dark matter. We determine the regions of the parameter space consistent with the observed dark matter density and show that they can be partially probed via direct and indirect dark matter detection or collider searches at the LHC. Neutrino masses, on the other hand, can be explained by a variant of the type-II seesaw mechanism involving one of the two scalar fields responsible for the dark matter mass.

De Sitter vacua and supersymmetry breaking in six-dimensional flux compactifications

We consider six-dimensional supergravity with Abelian bulk flux compactified on an orbifold. The effective low-energy action can be expressed in terms of N=1 chiral moduli superfields with a gauged shift symmetry. The D-term potential contains two Fayet-Iliopoulos terms which are induced by the flux and by the Green-Schwarz term canceling the gauge anomalies, respectively. The Green-Schwarz term also leads to a correction of the gauge kinetic function which turns out to be crucial for the existence of Minkowski and de Sitter vacua. Moduli stabilization is achieved by the interplay of the D-term and a nonperturbative superpotential. Varying the gauge coupling and the superpotential parameters, the scale of the extra dimensions can range from the GUT scale down to the TeV scale. Supersymmetry is broken by F- and D-terms, and the scale of gravitino, moduli, and modulini masses is determined by the size of the compact dimensions.

The vector-like twin Higgs

We present a version of the twin Higgs mechanism with vector-like top partners. In this setup all gauge anomalies automatically cancel, even without twin leptons. The matter content of the most minimal twin sector is therefore just two twin tops and one twin bottom. The LHC phenomenology, illustrated with two example models, is dominated by twin glueball decays, possibly in association with Higgs bosons. We further construct an explicit four-dimensional UV completion and discuss a variety of UV completions relevant for both vector-like and fraternal twin Higgs models.

String completion of an SU(3)c⊗ SU(3)L⊗ U(1)X electroweak model

The extended electroweak $\mathrm{SU(3)_c \otimes SU(3)_L \otimes U(1)_X}$ symmetry framework "explaining" the number of fermion families is revisited. While $331$-based schemes can not easily be unified within the conventional field theory sense, we show how to do it within an approach based on D-branes and (un)oriented open strings, on Calabi-Yau singularities. We show how the theory can be UV-completed in a quiver setup, free of gauge and string anomalies. Lepton and baryon numbers are perturbatively conserved, so neutrinos are Dirac-type, and their lightness results from a novel TeV scale seesaw mechanism. Dynamical violation of baryon number by exotic instantons could induce neutron-antineutron oscillations, with proton decay and other dangerous R-parity violating processes strictly forbidden.

De Sitter Vacua from an Anomalous Gauge Symmetry.

We find a new class of metastable de Sitter solutions in compactifications of six-dimensional supergravity motivated by type IIB or heterotic string vacua. Two Fayet-Iliopoulos terms of a local U(1) symmetry are generated by magnetic flux and by the Green-Schwarz term canceling the gauge anomalies, respectively. The interplay between the induced D term, the moduli dependence of the effective gauge coupling, and a nonperturbative superpotential stabilizes the moduli and determines the size of the extra dimensions.

Couplings between QCD axion and photon from string compactification

The QCD axion couplings of various invisible axion models are presented. In particular, the exact global symmetry U(1)$_{\rm PQ}$ in the superpotential is possible for the anomalous U(1) from string compactification, broken only by the gauge anomalies at one loop level, and is shown to have the resultant invisible axion coupling to photon, $c_{a\gamma\gamma}\ge \frac83-c_{a\gamma\gamma}^{\rm ch\,br}$ where $c_{a\gamma\gamma}^{\rm ch\,br}\simeq 2$. However, this bound is not applicable in approximate U(1)$_{\rm PQ}$ models with sufficiently suppressed U(1)$_{\rm PQ}$-breaking superpotential terms. We also present a simple method to obtain $c_{a\gamma\gamma}^0$ which is the value obtained above the electroweak scale.

F-theory and 2d (0, 2) theories

F-theory compactified on singular, elliptically fibered Calabi-Yau five-folds gives rise to two-dimensional gauge theories preserving N=(0,2) supersymmetry. In this paper we initiate the study of such compactifications and determine the dictionary between the geometric data of the elliptic fibration and the 2d gauge theory such as the matter content in terms of (0,2) superfields and their supersymmetric couplings. We study this setup both from a gauge-theoretic point of view, in terms of the partially twisted 7-brane theory, and provide a global geometric description based on the structure of the elliptic fibration and its singularities. Global consistency conditions are determined and checked against the dual M-theory compactification to one dimension. This includes a discussion of gauge anomalies, the structure of the Green-Schwarz terms and the Chern-Simons couplings in the dual M-theory supersymmetric quantum mechanics. Furthermore, by interpreting the resulting 2d (0,2) theories as heterotic worldsheet theories, we propose a correspondence between the geometric data of elliptically fibered Calabi-Yau five-folds and the target space of a heterotic gauged linear sigma-model (GLSM). In particular the correspondence between the Landau-Ginsburg and sigma-model phase of a 2d (0,2) GLSM is realized via different T-branes or gluing data in F-theory.

Anomaly cancelation in field theory and F-theory on a circle

We study the manifestation of local gauge anomalies of four- and six-dimensional field theories in the lower-dimensional Kaluza-Klein theory obtained after circle compactification. We identify a convenient set of transformations acting on the whole tower of massless and massive states and investigate their action on the low-energy effective theories in the Coulomb branch. The maps employ higher-dimensional large gauge transformations and precisely yield the anomaly cancelation conditions when acting on the one-loop induced Chern-Simons terms in the three- and five-dimensional effective theory. The arising symmetries are argued to play a key role in the study of the M-theory to F-theory limit on Calabi-Yau manifolds. For example, using the fact that all fully resolved F-theory geometries inducing multiple Abelian gauge groups or non-Abelian groups admit a certain set of symmetries, we are able to generally show the cancelation of pure Abelian or pure non-Abelian anomalies in these models.

Galilean anomalies and their effect on hydrodynamics

We extend the null background construction of [arXiv:1505.05677,arXiv:1509.04718] to include torsion and a conserved spin current, and use it to study gauge and gravitational anomalies in Galilean theories coupled to torsional Newton-Cartan backgrounds. We establish that the relativistic anomaly inflow mechanism with an appropriately modified anomaly polynomial, can be used to generate these anomalies. Similar to relativistic case, we find that Galilean anomalies also survive only in even dimensions. Further, these anomalies only effect the gauge and rotational symmetries of a Galilean theory; in particular the Milne boost symmetry remains non-anomalous. We also extend the transgression machinery used in relativistic fluids to fluids on null backgrounds, and use it to determine how these anomalies affect the constitutive relations of a Galilean fluid. Unrelated to Galilean fluids, we propose an analogue of the off-shell second law of thermodynamics for relativistic fluids introduced by [arXiv:1106.0277], to include torsion and a conserved spin current in Vielbein formalism. Interestingly, we find that even in absense of spin and torsion the entropy currents in two formalisms are different; while the usual entropy current gets a contribution from gravitational anomaly, the entropy current in Vielbein formalism does not have any anomaly induced part.

Anomalies and entanglement entropy

We initiate a systematic study of entanglement and Renyi entropies in the presence of gauge and gravitational anomalies in even-dimensional quantum field theories. We argue that the mixed and gravitational anomalies are sensitive to boosts and obtain a closed form expression for their behavior under such transformations. Explicit constructions exhibiting the dependence of entanglement entropy on boosts is provided for theories on spacetimes with non-trivial magnetic fluxes and (or) non-vanishing Pontryagin classes.

Is an axizilla possible for di-photon resonance?

Heavy axion-like particles, called axizillas, are simple extensions of the standard model(SM). An axizilla is required not to couple to the quarks, leptons, and Brout-Englert-Higgs doublets of the SM, but couple to the gauge anomalies of the $W^\pm, Z$ and photon. It is possible to have its branching ratios(BRs) to two photons greater than 10% and to two $Z$'s less than 10%. To have a (production cross section)$\cdot $(BR to di-photons) at a $10^{-38}\,\textrm{cm}^2$ level, a TeV scale heavy quark $Q$ is required for the gluon--quark fusion process. The decay of $Q$ to axizilla plus quark, and the subsequent decay of the axizilla to two photons can be fitted at the required level of $10^{-38}\,\textrm{cm}^2$.

Quantum critical behavior of semisimple gauge theories

We study the perturbative phase diagram of semi-simple fermionic gauge theories resembling the Standard Model. We investigate an $SU(N)$ gauge theory with $M$ Dirac flavors where we gauge first an $SU(M)_L$ and then an $SU(2)_L \subset SU(M)_L$ of the original global symmetry $SU(M)_L\times SU(M)_R \times U(1) $ of the theory. To avoid gauge anomalies we add lepton-like particles. At the two-loops level an intriguing phase diagram appears. We uncover phases in which one, two or three fixed points exist and discuss the associated flows of the coupling constants. We discover a phase featuring complete asymptotic freedom and simultaneously an interacting infrared fixed point in both couplings. The analysis further reveals special renormalisation group trajectories along which one coupling displays asymptotic freedom and the other asymptotic safety, while both flowing in the infrared to an interacting fixed point. These are \emph{safety free} trajectories. We briefly sketch out possible phenomenological implications, among which an independent way to generate near-conformal dynamics a l\'a walking is investigated.

Anomalous hydrodynamics in two dimensions

A new approach is presented to discuss two-dimensional hydrodynamics with gauge and gravitational anomalies. Exact constitutive relations for the stress tensor and charge current are obtained. Also, a connection between response parameters and anomaly coefficients is discussed. These are new results which, in the absence of the gauge sector, reproduce the results found by the gradient expansion approach.