Elliptic loci of \(\mathrm{SU}(3)\) vacua (Q2042354)

In this article the authors study the vacuum sector of the \(4\) dimensional \(N=2\) supersymmetric gauge theory with \(\mathrm{SU}(3)\) gauge group. Compared with the by-now classical description of the vacuum sector of the \(4\) dimensional \(N=2\) supersymmetric gauge theory with gauge group \(\mathrm{SU}(2)\) in terms of elliptic curves by [\textit{N. Seiberg} and \textit{E. Witten}, Nucl. Phys., B 426, No. 1, 19--52 (1994; Zbl 0996.81510)], the analogous problem for higher rank gauge groups contains substantially new features. All of these new features stem from the increasing dimension of the vacuum moduli space. In this paper (written in a rather physicists' style) the case of \(\mathrm{SU}(3)\) is examined in detail. A rough summary of the results exhbited in the present work are as follows: (i) in the case of \(\mathrm{SU}(3)\) the moduli space of vacua is \(2\) complex dimensional and also can be identified with a certain moduli space of complex curves which are however generically genus \(2\) curves; (ii) this family is studied explicitly using the so-called \textit{Rosenheim normal form} for these curves; (iii) two distinct natural subfamily comprising elliptic (i.e. genus \(1\) only) curves is identified and their physical meaning is clarified in terms of massles dyons (for the first family) as well as in the framework of \textit{Argyres-Douglas theory} (for the second family).