Consistency of M-theory on non-orientable manifolds

DOI10.1093/QMATH/HAAB007MaRDI QIDQ4956660zbMATH OpenOpenAlexFDO

Authors Daniel S. Freed, Michael J. Hopkins

Publication date 2 September 2021

Published in The Quarterly Journal of Mathematics (Search for Journal in Brave)

Full work available at URL https://arxiv.org/abs/1908.09916

zbMATH Keywords

\(\eta \)-invariant\(C\)-fieldanomalybordism groupM-theorypartition functionsuperstring

Mathematics Subject Classification ID

Applications of vector bundles and moduli spaces in mathematical physics (twistor theory, instantons, quantum field theory) (14D21) Twisted and skew group rings, crossed products (16S35) Bordism and cobordism theories and formal group laws in algebraic topology (55N22) Adams spectral sequences (55T15) Eta-invariants, Chern-Simons invariants (58J28) Noncommutative geometry in quantum theory (81R60) Matrix models and tensor models for quantum field theory (81T32)

Abstract: We prove that there is no parity anomaly in M-theory in the low-energy field theory approximation. Our approach is computational. We determine generators for the 12-dimensional bordism group of pin manifolds with a w_1-twisted integer lift of w_4; these are the manifolds on which Wick-rotated M-theory exists. The anomaly cancellation comes down to computing a specific eta-invariant and cubic form on these manifolds. Of interest beyond this specific problem are our expositions of: computational techniques for eta-invariants, the algebraic theory of cubic forms, Adams spectral sequence techniques, and anomalies for spinor fields and Rarita-Schwinger fields.

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• Cubic forms, anomaly cancellation and modularity
• Chern-Weil global symmetries and how quantum gravity avoids them
• Global anomalies in 8d supergravity
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• An approach to anomalies in M-theory via KSpin
• Symmetry TFTs from string theory
• Anomaly inflow of Rarita-Schwinger field in 3 dimensions
• Flat F-theory and friends
• New Bochner type theorems
• Global anomalies & bordism of non-supersymmetric strings
• What bordism-theoretic anomaly cancellation can do for U
• Frobenius-Schur indicators for twisted Real representation theory and two dimensional unoriented topological field theory
• Bordism for the 2-group symmetries of the heterotic and CHL strings
• Constraints on the topology of type IIB string theory
• Index theory on Pin manifolds
• M-theory boundaries beyond supersymmetry
• Quantum corrections to DGKT and the weak gravity conjecture
• SymTFTs and non-invertible symmetries of 6d (2, 0) SCFTs of type D from M-theory
• What IIB looks IIA string: string cobordisms via non-compact CFTs

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