Non-supersymmetric flux vacua

Non-supersymmetric flux vacua#

In 2308.15525 we construct large ensembles of supersymmetry breaking solutions arising in the context of flux compactifications of type IIB string theory. This class of solutions was previously proposed in [hep-th/0402135] (Saltman–Silverstein) for which we provide the first explicit examples in Calabi-Yau orientifold compactifications with discrete fluxes below their respective tadpole constraint. As a proof of concept, we study the degree-18 hypersurface in weighted projective space \(\mathbb{CP}_{1,1,1,6,9}\). Furthermore, we look at 10 additional orientifolds with \(h^{1,2} = 2, 3\). We find several flux vacua with hierarchical suppression of the vacuum energy with respect to the gravitino mass. These solutions provide a crucial stepping stone for the construction of explicit de Sitter vacua in string theory. Lastly, we also report the difference in the distribution of \(W_0\) between supersymmetric and non-supersymmetric minima.

Key results#

  • First explicit examples: We construct the first explicit non-supersymmetric flux vacua of the Saltman–Silverstein type [hep-th/0402135] in Calabi-Yau orientifold compactifications with integer fluxes satisfying the tadpole constraint.

  • Geometries studied: The degree-18 hypersurface \(\mathbb{CP}_{1,1,1,6,9}\) (one complex structure modulus) and 10 additional orientifolds with \(h^{1,2} = 2\) or \(3\).

  • Hierarchical vacuum energy: Multiple solutions are found where the vacuum energy is hierarchically suppressed relative to \(m_{3/2}^2 M_{\mathrm{Pl}}^2\), a prerequisite for low-energy supersymmetry breaking scenarios and de Sitter uplifting.

  • \(W_0\) distributions: The \(W_0\) distribution at non-supersymmetric minima is found to differ systematically from the Gaussian distribution of supersymmetric ISD vacua, providing a comparative benchmark for landscape statistics.

Relevant JAXVacua modules and notebooks#

The minimisation of the full scalar potential (beyond the ISD approximation) uses jaxvacua.css and jaxvacua.flux_eft. The relevant tutorials are:

To cite our work, please use:

@article{Krippendorf:2023idy,
    author = "Krippendorf, Sven and Schachner, Andreas",
    title = "{New non-supersymmetric flux vacua in string theory}",
    eprint = "2308.15525",
    archivePrefix = "arXiv",
    primaryClass = "hep-th",
    reportNumber = "LMU-ASC 30/23",
    doi = "10.1007/JHEP12(2023)145",
    journal = "JHEP",
    volume = "12",
    pages = "145",
    year = "2023"
}