Superstring field theory and the Wess-Zumino-Witten action

Abstract

Abstract We describe a notion of “higher” Wess-Zumino-Witten-like action which is natural in the context of superstring field theories formulated in the large Hilbert space. For the open string, the action is characterized by a pair of commuting cyclic A ∞ structures together with a hierarchy of higher-form potentials analogous to the Maurer-Cartan elements which appear in the conventional Wess-Zumino-Witten action. We apply this formalism to get a better understanding of symmetries of open superstring field theory and the structure of interactions in the Ramond sector, describing an interesting connection between Ramond vertices and Feynman diagrams.

Keywords

• String Field Theory
• Superstrings and Heterotic Strings