This is part of a program in string theory that explores what happens to extended objects in (eleven dimensional) M-theory when subjected to extreme (higher dimensional analog of) magnetic flux. M-theory is known to possess extended two-dimensional and five-dimensional objects (called M2-branes and M5-branes) that carry localized energy and extra local degrees of freedom. It is a 25-year-old open problem to describe the local degrees of freedom of (a stack of multiple) M5-branes, and in this project we will attempt to gain insight by probing an M5-brane with a strong flux and comparing the induced interactions with a recently proposed theory.

Students will be introduced to quantum field theory, Feynman diagrams, supersymmetry, and extra dimensions. The project may involve computation of Feynman diagrams, calculations in General Relativity, and coding in either Mathematica or Python.