A stable vacuum of the tachyonic E8 string

2007/10/09 by Simeon Hellerman, Hellerman, Simeon, Ian Swanson +1 · 4 citations
Computer Science · Physics and Astronomy · #Black Holes and Theoretical Physics #Computational Physics and Python Applications #Cosmology and Gravitation Theories #FOS: Physical sciences #High Energy Physics - Theory (hep-th)

paper · pdf · doi:10.48550/arxiv.0710.1628

openalex publication_date 2007/10/09 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/28

Abstract

We consider tachyon condensation in unstable ten-dimensional heterotic string theory with gauge group E8. In the background of a lightlike linear dilaton rolling to weak coupling, we find an exact solution in which the theory decays to a stable ground state. The final state represents a new, modular-invariant perturbative string theory, tachyon-free in nine spacetime dimensions with a spacelike dilaton gradient, E8 gauge group and no spacetime supersymmetry.

Cited by

• New analytic solutions of non-SUSY black branes in 10-D heterotic supergravity and the phase transition
• On the trivalent junction of three non-tachyonic heterotic string theories
• Quantum Information Theory of the Gravitational Anomaly
• Light-like tachyon condensation in Open String Field Theory

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