
From the standard model to M-theory: The development of string theory
- 1 University of Toronto
* Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Abstract
String theory is now the most competitive theory of quantum gravity, and it takes an important role in theoretical physics. In this article, we introduced why we need string theory and how string theory is formed. The importance of string theory is described through general relativity and the Standard Model of particle physics. String theory is originally discovered to describe strong interaction. While a better model for strong interaction was developed, string theory was found to be a candidate for a theory about quantum gravity. The first version of string theory is the bosonic string theory, which was constructed in 26-dimensional space and used to describe bosons. After supersymmetry was introduced, the dimensions were reduced to 10, and the theory is hence called the superstring theory. In the first superstring revolution, 5 different superstring theories were constructed and compactified on the 6-dimensional Calabi-Yau manifold. In the second superstring revolution, the idea of different dualities was introduced in string, as well as D-branes. Hence, it was found that the 5 different superstrings can be unified to get the 11-dimensional M-theory.
Keywords
String Theory, Dual Models, Supersymmetry, M-Theory
[1]. G. Veneziano, “Construction of a crossing-simmetric, regge-behaved amplitude for linearly rising trajectories,” Il Nuovo Cimento A, vol. 57, no. 1, pp. 190–197, 1968. doi:10.1007/bf02824451
[2]. T. Yoneya, “Quantum gravity and the zero-slope limit of the generalized Virasoro model,” Lettere al Nuovo Cimento, vol. 8, no. 16, pp. 951–955, 1973. doi:10.1007/bf02727806
[3]. J. E. Paton and H.-M. Chan, “Generalized veneziano model with Isospin,” Nuclear Physics B, vol. 10, no. 3, pp. 516–520, 1969. doi:10.1016/0550-3213(69)90038-8
[4]. P. Ramond, “Dual theory for free fermions,” Physical Review D, vol. 3, no. 10, pp. 2415–2418, 1971. doi:10.1103/physrevd.3.2415
[5]. T. Yoneya, “Connection of dual models to electrodynamics and Gravidynamics,” Progress of Theoretical Physics, vol. 51, no. 6, pp. 1907–1920, 1974. doi:10.1143/ptp.51.1907
[6]. J. Scherk and J. H. Schwarz, “Dual models for non-hadrons,” Nuclear Physics B, vol. 81, no. 1, pp. 118–144, 1974. doi:10.1016/0550-3213(74)90010-8
[7]. F. Gliozzi, J. Scherk, and D. Olive, “Supersymmetry, supergravity theories and the dual spinor model,” Nuclear Physics B, vol. 122, no. 2, pp. 253–290, 1977. doi:10.1016/0550-3213(77)90206-1
[8]. M. B. Green and J. H. Schwarz, “Covariant description of superstrings,” Physics Letters B, vol. 136, no. 5–6, pp. 367–370, 1984. doi:10.1016/0370-2693(84)92021-5
[9]. M. B. Green and J. H. Schwarz, “Anomaly cancellations in supersymmetric D = 10 gauge theory and superstring theory,” Physics Letters B, vol. 149, no. 1–3, pp. 117–122, 1984. doi:10.1016/0370-2693(84)91565-x
[10]. D. J. Gross, J. A. Harvey, E. Martinec, and R. Rohm, “Heterotic String,” Physical Review Letters, vol. 54, no. 6, pp. 502–505, 1985. doi:10.1103/physrevlett.54.502
[11]. P. Candelas, G. T. Horowitz, A. Strominger, and E. Witten, “Vacuum configurations for superstrings,” Nuclear Physics B, vol. 258, pp. 46–74, 1985. doi:10.1016/0550-3213(85)90602-9
[12]. K. Kikkawa and M. Yamasaki, “Casimir effects in superstring theories,” Physics Letters B, vol. 149, no. 4–5, pp. 357–360, 1984. doi:10.1016/0370-2693(84)90423-4
[13]. A. Sen, “Strong–weak coupling duality in four-dimensional string theory,” International Journal of Modern Physics A, vol. 09, no. 21, pp. 3707–3750, 1994. doi:10.1142/s0217751x94001497
[14]. N. Seiberg and E. Witten, “Electric-magnetic duality, monopole condensation, and confinement in n=2 supersymmetric Yang-Mills theory,” Nuclear Physics B, vol. 426, no. 1, pp. 19–52, 1994. doi:10.1016/0550-3213(94)90124-4
[15]. N. Seiberg, Edward Witten (1994). Monopoles, duality and chiral symmetry breaking in N=2 supersymmetric QCD. https://doi.org/10.1016/0550-3213(94)90214-3
[16]. E. Witten, “String theory dynamics in various dimensions,” Nuclear Physics B, vol. 443, no. 1–2, pp. 85–126, 1995. doi:10.1016/0550-3213(95)00158-o
[17]. P. Hořava and E. Witten, “Heterotic and type I string dynamics from eleven dimensions,” Nuclear Physics B, vol. 460, no. 3, pp. 506–524, 1996. doi:10.1016/0550-3213(95)00621-4
[18]. J. Polchinski, “Dirichlet branes and ramond-ramond charges,” Physical Review Letters, vol. 75, no. 26, pp. 4724–4727, 1995. doi:10.1103/physrevlett.75.4724
[19]. A. Strominger, “Massless black holes and Conifolds in string theory,” Nuclear Physics B, vol. 451, no. 1–2, pp. 96–108, 1995. doi:10.1016/0550-3213(95)00287-3
[20]. J. Maldacena, “The large N limit of superconformal field theories and supergravity,” Advances in Theoretical and Mathematical Physics, vol. 2, no. 2, pp. 231–252, 1998. doi:10.4310/atmp.1998.v2.n2.a1.
Cite this article
Wen,C. (2024). From the standard model to M-theory: The development of string theory. Theoretical and Natural Science,43,205-209.
Data availability
The datasets used and/or analyzed during the current study will be available from the authors upon reasonable request.
Disclaimer/Publisher's Note
The statements, opinions and data contained in all publications are solely those of the individual author(s) and contributor(s) and not of EWA Publishing and/or the editor(s). EWA Publishing and/or the editor(s) disclaim responsibility for any injury to people or property resulting from any ideas, methods, instructions or products referred to in the content.
About volume
Volume title: Proceedings of the 3rd International Conference on Computing Innovation and Applied Physics
© 2024 by the author(s). Licensee EWA Publishing, Oxford, UK. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and
conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license. Authors who
publish this series agree to the following terms:
1. Authors retain copyright and grant the series right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons
Attribution License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgment of the work's authorship and initial publication in this
series.
2. Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the series's published
version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgment of its initial
publication in this series.
3. Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and
during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See
Open access policy for details).