Title: On Supersymmetry and Boundaries
Speaker: Itamar Shamir, Weizmann Institute
Date: Wednesday, November 12, 2014
Time: 2:00pm – 3:00pm
Place: Lecture Hall 102, Simons Center
[box, type=”download”]Watch the Video.
[/box]
Abstract: We consider N=1 supersymmetric theories on 4d spaces with boundaries. The variation of the Lagrangian under supersymmetry is a total derivative, which presents an obstruction to preserving supersymmetry on spaces with boundaries. Such total derivative terms can be canceled by boundary actions without specifying boundary conditions. We determine the general form of the boundary actions. They come in two different classes, preserving a subalgebra corresponding to (1) N=1 in 3d, and (2) N=(0,2) in 2d. Additionally, the boundary actions are related to the brane currents appearing in the current algebra of supersymmetry. Subalgebra (1) is obtained by coupling to the domain-wall current and (2) by coupling to the string current.