Wormholes in the axiverse, and the species scale

We analyze a large class of four-dimensional \(\mathcal{N}=1\) low-energy realizations of the axiverse satisfying various quantum gravity constraints. We propose a novel upper bound on the ultimate UV cutoff of the effective theory, namely the species scale, which only depends on data available at t...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:arXiv.org 2024-07
Main Authors: Martucci, Luca, Risso, Nicolò, Valenti, Alessandro, Vecchi, Luca
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Field theory
Gravitational effects
Hypothetical particles
Instantons
Lower bounds
Quantum gravity
String theory
Upper bounds
Wormholes
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Summary:We analyze a large class of four-dimensional \(\mathcal{N}=1\) low-energy realizations of the axiverse satisfying various quantum gravity constraints. We propose a novel upper bound on the ultimate UV cutoff of the effective theory, namely the species scale, which only depends on data available at the two-derivative level. Its dependence on the moduli fields and the number \(N\) of axions matches expectations from other independent considerations. After an assessment of the regime of validity of the effective field theory, we investigate the non-perturbative gravitational effects therein. We identify a set of axionic charges supported by extremal and non-extremal wormhole configurations. We present a universal class of analytic wormhole solutions, explore their deformations, and analyze the relation between wormhole energy scales and species scale. The connection between these wormholes and a special subclass of BPS fundamental instantons is discussed, and an argument in favor of the genericity of certain axion-dependent effective superpotentials is provided. We find a lower bound increasing with \(N\gg 1\) on the Gauss-Bonnet coefficient, resulting in an exponential suppression of non-extremal wormhole effects. Our claims are illustrated and tested in concrete string theory models.
ISSN:2331-8422