Papers

The two-to-two four-dimensional scattering amplitude of identical scalars obeys rigorous two-sided non-perturbative bounds derived via the modern numerical S-matrix bootstrap. These bounds carve out an allowed region with a rich boundary structure, featuring edges and vertices. In this work we further tighten this region and uncover the physics of its boundary by analyzing the asymptotic Regge behavior of the amplitude and the spectrum of resonances and virtual states. We find that the S-matrices along a given edge exhibit universal behavior, sharply contrasting with that on other edges. This reveals a classification of the boundary into distinct phases, corresponding to different UV mechanisms by which a gapped scalar arises.

It has been known for a long time that initializing weight matrices to be orthogonal instead of having i.i.d. Gaussian components can improve training performance. This phenomenon can be analyzed using finite-width corrections, where the infinite-width statistics are supplemented by a power series in $1/\mathrm{width}$. In particular, recent empirical results by Day et al. show that the tensors appearing in this treatment stabilize for large depth, as opposed to the tensors of i.i.d.-initialized networks. In this article, we derive explicit layer-wise recursion relations for the tensors appearing in the finite-width expansion of the network statistics in the case of orthogonal initializations. We also provide an extension of recently-introduced Feynman diagrams for the corresponding recursions in the i.i.d.-case which are valid to all orders in $1/\mathrm{width}$. Finally, we show explicitly that the recursions we derive reproduce the stability of the finite-width tensors which was observed for activation functions with vanishing fixed point. This work therefore provides a theoretical explanation for the stability of nonlinear networks of finite width initialized with orthogonal weights, closing a long-standing gap in the literature. We validate our theoretical results experimentally by showing that numerical solutions of our recursion relations and their analytical large-depth expansions agree excellently with Monte-Carlo estimates from network ensembles.

We continue the study of non-Abelian vortex string in 4D $\mathcal{N}=2$ supersymmetric QCD as critical superstring, and extend this analysis to $U(N)$ gauge theory with arbitrary even $N$ and $N_f=2N$ number of quarks. We introduce a special mass deformation and show that the SQCD hadron spectrum is still given by the string spectrum on the 2D $\mathcal{N}=2$ supersymmetric black hole. We perform a cross-check by computing the multiplicity of hadronic states of the high-energy part of the spectrum both from string and field theory pictures. We also clarify the spontaneous breaking of the global flavor symmetry by VEV of the massless baryon. We finally claim, that phase diagram of $\mathcal{N}=2$ SQCD with $N_f=2N$ consists of the Higgs phase at weak coupling and string/hadronic phase at strong coupling, separated by phase transition, and is seen as a conifold transition from string theory point of view.

We present an explicit formula for the $n$-site chain graph contribution to the cosmological wavefunction for conformally coupled $\phi^3$ theory in de Sitter space. Our result relies on the recent finding that the symbol of this function satisfies total compatibility with respect to the $A_{2n-2}$ cluster algebra, and that Rudenko's quadrangular polylogarithms provide, by construction, a complete basis for such functions. We prove our formula by directly relating a recursive set of differential equations satisfied by these wavefunction coefficients to a recursive coproduct formula for quadrangular polylogarithms.

We revisit the Hagedorn regime of string theory from a nonequilibrium perspective using Steepest-Entropy-Ascent Quantum Thermodynamics (SEAQT), which formulates thermodynamic evolution directly on the state manifold without requiring a globally well-defined canonical ensemble. Treating the inverse temperature as an instantaneous, state-dependent quantity, we derive its exact scalar evolution equation, governed in the commuting limit by higher-order fluctuation moments. In an open-system extension we prove that the inverse-temperature mobility equals unity identically on the quasi-canonical family: a divergent Hagedorn variance is necessary but not sufficient for slowing-down, and a reservoir coupled democratically to the whole spectrum drives the system across the Hagedorn scale unimpeded. Slowing-down requires instead a hierarchy of injection rates, in which direct production of highly excited strings by the reservoir is slow compared with a cascade through light quasi-particle modes. The mobility then collapses to a floor set by the ratio of the two rates, the intensive variable is pinned near the Hagedorn scale, and energy condenses into the long-string sector at a finite rate; the pinning is a long-lived transient of computable duration. Promoting the Hagedorn scale to a moduli-dependent quantity along emergent-string limits yields a finite critical distance $\Delta_*$ at which the thermodynamic inertia diverges as $(\Delta_*-\Delta)^{a-3}$ for $1<a<3$, and beyond which pinning can activate. Since Kaluza–Klein towers admit no such divergence, this provides a thermodynamic discriminant between emergent-string and decompactification limits.

We calculate the non-planar corrections to the anomalous dimensions of certain quarter BPS states in the symmetric product orbifold $\text{Sym}^N \big({\mathbb{T}^4}\big)$. We find that some of the degeneracies in the spectrum for large twist $w$ and large $N$ are lifted by these contributions. We furthermore find signatures of quantum chaos, namely level repulsion and random matrix statistics. This suggests that integrability is only present in the symmetric orbifold in the planar (i.e. large $N$) limit.

We study the large-\(c\) expansion of general relativity in ADM variables. Using a unified even \(\omega\)-expansion, the ADM formulation gives a common starting point for Galilean and Carrollian limits. We focus on the Galilean branch and derive the ADM action and field equations up to NNLO. We then construct stationary vacuum solutions of the Galilean ADM equations up to NNLO in weak and strong branches. In the weak branch, we find NLO Kerr-type, Hartle–Thorne-type and mixed-type solutions. The NLO weak equations also allow a simple extension to higher mass multipoles. At NNLO, the weak Kerr-type and extended Hartle–Thorne-type sectors solve the equations separately, but their naive sum is not a solution. The nonlinear NNLO equations generate mixed \(J^2Q\) source terms, which require additional corrections to the NNLO lapse and NNLO spatial tensor field. This gives a mixed weak-branch Galilean solution of the truncated NNLO equations in the ADM gauge, whose full relativistic completion is not fixed by the truncated data alone. In the strong branch, Kerr-type data solve the equations through NNLO while the strong Hartle–Thorne-type data solve the NLO equations. We also explain how the ADM data can be reconstructed order by order into approximate spacetime metrics. These reconstructed metrics should not be interpreted by themselves as unique full relativistic completions. Since these metrics include spin, quadrupole and mixed spin–quadrupole effects, they may be useful for studying the spacetime around rotating compact objects such as black holes and neutron stars.

These lecture notes introduce some topics of classical statistical physics, particularly those that are relevant for neural networks and deep learning. Statistical physics is treated as a branch of probability theory or statistics, with the goal of making concepts such as phase transitions and the renormalization group accessible to readers without prior knowledge of physics. We introduce the Boltzmann-Gibbs distribution and the thermodynamic potentials on a finite configuration space, notably for Ising spins and spin-glass models on a lattice, and then define phase transitions as discontinuities that arise in the limit that the number of lattice points goes to infinity. We further introduce Hopfield networks and Boltzmann machines, which are governed by the same energy function as spin-glass models, and discuss the learning algorithm for restricted Boltzmann machines. In this algorithm hidden neurons are integrated out as in the renormalization group. Finally, modern deep learning is introduced, whose early developments were in part motivated by restricted Boltzmann machines in that they carry many layers of hidden neurons. A description of large language models is given.

The non-linear nature of Yang-Mills theory presents a challenge for extracting exact classical solutions, which are useful for understanding non-perturbative vacuum structures. In this paper, an algebraic tensor ring decomposition framework is introduced to systematically map the non-linear partial differential equations (PDEs) of Yang-Mills theory into tractable differential-algebraic systems. By promoting static pure-gauge backgrounds to dynamical variables, the reference state acts as a geometric template whose Maurer-Cartan forms generate the algebraic cross-terms necessary to stabilize non-linear self-interactions. To analytically resolve the resulting differential ideals, specific differential-algebraic quotient rings are employed as evaluation tools, and the solution space is organized by an algebraic bifurcation analysis. Applying this framework, three distinct classes of exact solutions are extracted: (i) relativistic $SU(2)$ color waves evaluated over an elliptic quotient ring, where the differential ideal bifurcates into a Decoupled Branch and two Coupled Branches, the latter exhibiting mass gap generation; (ii) dynamical dyonic flux tubes obtained from a time-dependent helical template, where the Gauss law ideal bifurcates the system into Coulomb, Dyonic, and symmetric Meissner branches. In the Meissner branch, an Artinian asymptotic truncation yields Bessel-type exponential screening, stabilized by a temporal dominance condition; and (iii) dynamical $SU(3)$ configurations where the Gauss law ideal bifurcates the solution space into four distinct phases. The non-trivial branches enforce a kinetic cancellation mechanism that maps the amplitude dynamics onto a generalized $x^2y^2$ chaotic oscillator. Across these settings, the framework provides a methodical approach to characterize the classical solution space of strongly coupled gauge theories.

We construct a class of non-invertible duality defects, in (2+1)d quantum field theories, arising from half-spacetime gauging of a 2-group symmetry. Starting from a parent theory with two discrete and Abelian 0-form symmetries and a prescribed mixed anomaly, we show that gauging one factor produces a theory with a 2-group symmetry, while gauging the other yields a theory with a non-invertible 0-form symmetry, whose fusion rules we derive explicitly. When the parent theory possesses three such symmetries with a cyclic anomaly structure, gauging different factors can produce mutually dual theories and the half-spacetime gauging of the 2-group is implemented by a non-invertible duality defect, whose fusion rules we obtain. We illustrate the construction with explicit examples, including a $U(1)\times U(1)\times U(1)$ gauge theory and a general class of product theories. We also include a self-contained pedagogical introduction to the cohomological tools employed throughout the article.

The massive Majorana field in $1+1$ dimension is employed to investigate the violation of the Bell-CHSH inequality in relativistic Quantum Field Theory. We give an explicit rapidity-space realization of the Summers-Werner modular-localization construction and reduce the vacuum Bell-CHSH correlator to a single spectral weight $h^2(\omega)$ for the modular operator. The resulting analytic families approach the Tsirelson bound in the vacuum state as their spectral weight concentrates near $\omega\approx0$, corresponding to the eigenvalue $\lambda^2 \approx 1$ of the modular operator.

Recently we have proposed a new auxiliary-field formulation for self-dual nonlinear electrodynamics (NLED) which makes use of two building blocks: (i) a seed self-dual theory $L(F_{\mu\nu};g)$, where $F_{\mu \nu}$ is the electromagnetic field strength and $g$ a duality-invariant coupling constant; and (ii) a scalar potential $W(\psi)$. Our formulation is based on the Lagrangian $ \mathfrak{L}(F_{\mu\nu};\psi) = L(F_{\mu\nu};\psi) + W(\psi)$, where $\psi$ is an auxiliary scalar field. Integrating out $\psi$, using its equation of motion, one obtains a $\mathsf{U}(1)$ duality-invariant NLED. Different self-dual NLEDs are derived by choosing different potentials $W(\psi)$. In the case that the seed Lagrangian defines the Born-Infeld theory, in this paper we demonstrate that the resulting models for self-dual NLED are causal and provide a general solution of the self-duality equation. We also elaborate on the procedure to relate our formulation to that developed by Russo and Townsend.

We show that, for an $SU(2)$ gauge field (the reasoning extends trivially to $SU(N)$), spontaneous symmetry breaking changes the field cohomology. This defines a new field with cohomological properties characteristic of matter fields. Consequently, the construction of a renormalizable unitary gauge fixing, following Morse's problem of functional extremization, leads to the Gribov condition being automatically solved on-shell. This result occurs because a specific combination of fields is cohomologically matter-like and therefore free of the Gribov problem.

We propose a novel, machine-learning-based framework for constructing lattice fermions using Physics-Informed Neural Networks (PINNs). Our approach treats the formulation of the Dirac operator as an optimization problem guided by physical requirements, such as symmetries, locality and doubler-decoupling conditions. We first demonstrate that, when trained to satisfy the Ginsparg-Wilson (GW) relation as a soft constraint, a neural network reproduces the overlap fermion operator to high numerical accuracy and learns an effective sign-function mapping without explicitly using a prescribed polynomial or rational approximation. Secondly, we extend the framework from operator construction to machine-assisted algebraic discovery. Within a generalized polynomial ansatz, the network autonomously drives higher-order terms to zero and recovers the standard Ginsparg-Wilson relation. Remarkably, by changing the initial search bias, the same framework also finds a distinct solution corresponding to a Fujikawa-type generalized GW relation.

We present a perturbative formulation of quantum gravity for asymptotically flat vacuum spacetimes based on the Null Surface Formulation (NSF), in which the expansion is ultraviolet-finite term by term up to the orders computed, without the need for renormalization. The outgoing Bondi shear operators are constructed explicitly up to fourth order, with interaction kernels determined recursively from on-shell gravitational data at null infinity. Ultraviolet finiteness at each order follows from the on-shell structure of the construction and the restriction of all integrations to the compact celestial sphere, eliminating off-shell propagators. The map between the in and out states admits a perturbative construction, and unitarity is verified explicitly up to fourth order. The outgoing operators satisfy the same commutation relations as the incoming ones, indicating that the transformation is canonical and consistent with the unitary implementation. Collinear configurations give rise to infrared singularities, as expected in massless quantum field theories, but do not affect the ultraviolet behavior established here. In coherent states, the expectation value of the shear reproduces the known finite classical graviton scattering at lowest nontrivial order. These results provide a perturbative framework for quantum gravity with improved ultraviolet behavior relative to the covariant approach.

We investigate light-cone smearing induced by quantum fluctuations of gravitons and its implications for the ultraviolet structure of quantum field theory. By treating the first-order correction to Synge's world function as an operator, we show that the retarded Green's function is smeared by the variance of graviton fluctuations. The smearing width depends on the quantum state of gravitons: vacuum fluctuations generate a Gaussian smearing of the light cone, coherent states shift the light-cone position, and squeezed states modify the smearing width itself. We then apply the smeared Feynman propagator to one-loop self-energies in interacting scalar field theories. Within a phenomenological finite-resolution prescription that keeps the effective width nonzero, the ultraviolet-sensitive short-distance terms in the $\phi^3$ bubble and $\phi^4$ tadpole diagram expressions are finite. For the illustrative choice that the coarse-graining scale is the Planck length, primordial gravitons induce a relative correction of order $10^{-10}$ to the one-loop self-energy. Our results suggest that the quantum state of gravitons can leave a finite imprint on the causal and short-distance structure of quantum field theory.

We explore and discuss corrections to the Newton potential from the quantum effects of conformal matter fields. In this special case, one can compare different approaches, including that of effective quantum gravity and another, based on the conformal (trace) anomaly. The comparison of these two methods is the main focus in the present work. Using the anomaly-induced effective action of gravity requires fixing the quantum vacuum state, similar to what is done in the description of black hole evaporation. In the Boulware vacuum state, we compute the anomaly-induced stress tensor and the first-order correction to the classical gravitational law. The quantum correction to the Newton's potential derived in this way, differs from the result calculated in a way analogous to the effective approach to quantum gravity. The only way to reconcile the two approaches for deriving the leading semiclassical corrections to Newtonian potential is to modify the asymptotic behavior of the average of the energy-momentum tensor in the Boulware vacuum state, as has been recently discussed in the literature.

There is an increasing number of algorithmic computations in theoretical physics. These, while conceptually simple, can nevertheless be time-consuming and contain subtleties that should not be overlooked. Given the recent improvement of Large Language Models (LLM), it is natural to investigate whether LLMs equipped with a computer algebra system (CAS) runtime and sufficiently informative context can reliably carry out these algorithmic tasks. In this work, we interface Claude with Maple, and apply this framework to cosmological perturbations in modified theories of gravity. We demonstrate the current capabilities of this approach, the typical failures, and how the same can be improved. We find that a frontier LLM supplied with worked examples is able to solve most test problems.

The construction of traversable wormholes with a cosmological constant, $\Lambda$, introduces significant challenges and leads to non-trivial modifications of the spacetime geometry. In this work, we obtain an analytical solution describing a locally traversable wormhole for $\Lambda>0$ following a perturbative approach. Starting from the Ellis-Bronnikov wormhole geometry, we derive the metric deformation induced by the cosmological constant at linear order, assuming $\Lambda r^2_0\ll 1$, where $r_0$ represents the throat of the Ellis-Bronnikov wormhole. We further identify the radial domain of validity of the perturbative solution, which is restricted to $r\ll\sqrt{3/\Lambda}$. Within this domain, we find that the Ellis-Bronnikov wormhole is modified by the cosmological constant; interestingly, the shape function takes a de Sitter-like form. Nevertheless, we verify that the flare-out condition holds at the deformed throat and find a violation of the null energy condition in its vicinity, as required for traversable WHs. Traversability is further analyzed by evaluating tidal forces and deriving constraints on the velocity required for safe human passage. Additionally, we discuss the possibility of constructing a global extension by matching the perturbative wormhole solution to a Schwarzschild-de Sitter exterior spacetime. Given the recent advances in the observational study of astrophysical compact objects, together with a variety of astrophysical and cosmological observations indicating the existence of a positive cosmological constant, the analytical solution presented here may be of considerable phenomenological interest.

We introduce the Frustrated Distance Matrix (FDM) model, a dynamic extension of the static distance-matrix ensemble on S^2 analyzed by Bogomolny, Bohigas, and Schmit (BBS). Its entries are pairwise geodesic distances between N Brownian particles on the sphere evolving under quenched random pairwise couplings linear in those distances. Where the static BBS theory recovers geometric information about the underlying manifold from spectra of distance matrices on i.i.d.\ samples, the time-resolved FDM spectrum carries information about structural changes of the underlying point process. The particle dynamics realize one such change: a fast collapse from a uniform configuration onto a one-dimensional ring, followed by slow rotational drift of the ring orientation; the particle-level picture provides the ground truth against which spectral diagnostics are calibrated. We find that the static BBS template is preserved at every time, with the dynamics entering as a redistribution of spectral mass within that template, sharp enough to flag ring formation. We propose self-averaging of the bulk density as the mechanism behind this preservation, verified by an i.i.d.-resample comparison, and extract a small set of spectral diagnostics of the structural change computable from the distance matrix alone. We suggest that our diagnostics can be applied in other similar inverse-problem settings: financial correlation matrices, graph and network adjacency spectra, similarity matrices in molecular dynamics, and dynamics on parameter manifolds.

We study fluctuations of the metric in the postquantum theory of classical gravity, a covariant theory which couples a classical spacetime with quantum matter fields. Mathematical consistency requires spacetime to evolve stochastically. Starting from the classical-quantum path integral, we linearize around Minkowski space and perform a scalar-vector-tensor decomposition, identifying the stochastic modes: a classical spin-2 field and spin-0 scalar, both diffusing around their respective wave equations. There is also a non-dynamical vector and scalar field. These are related to the degrees of freedom found in quadratic gravity, but here interpreted as stochastic contributions to spacetime. We show that the action is positive semi-definite (PSD) on all dynamical modes, which is a necessary condition for the theory to consistently treat spacetime classically. We compute the two-point function and power spectral density corresponding to fluctuations of the Newtonian potential, and compare it to the excess noise found in LISA Pathfinder. This sets a bound on one combination of the two dimensionless coupling constants of the theory, while bounds on the stochastic gravitational wave energy density in a FLRW background constrain another combination. We derive the effective action for matter distributions, and find that bounds from decoherence experiments are constrained by fluctuations in the Newtonian potential $\Phi$ and the curvature perturbation $\psi$. Finally, we show consistency between different formulations of the pure gravity theory, the Onsager-Machlup form of the action, the Martin-Siggia-Rose form, and that given by stochastic differential equations.

We develop a statistical field theory that describes the large-N limit of a system of Brownian particles with quenched random pairwise interactions on a compact two-dimensional Riemannian manifold. The resulting Frustrated Fields (F2) model is a non-linear field theory for a smooth self-interacting density field $\rho$ on the manifold, with local and non-local (in space and time) self-interactions characteristic of spin-glass dynamics. Particle simulations show adiabatic dimension reduction: on $S^2$, the density concentrates on a slowly precessing great-circle ring whose orientation is a director ($\hat{\mathbf{n}} \sim -\hat{\mathbf{n}}$, even profile). Conditioned on this simulation-supported ring saddle and on a Born-Oppenheimer separation between the slow orientation and the gapped density fluctuations, symmetry fixes the low-energy dynamics to be the nonlinear sigma model (NLSM) on the real projective plane $S^2/\mathbb{Z}_2 = \mathbb{RP}^2$ (the $\mathbb{RP}^2$ NLSM on the projective rotor space) in $(0+1)$ dimensions, governed by a single low-energy constant, the rotational diffusion coefficient $D_{\text{rot}}$. With $D_{\text{rot}}$ and the static ring profile $f_0$ measured from particle simulations, the resulting effective theory reproduces multiple independent orientation- and density-sector diagnostics with no further adjustable parameters.

In an earlier paper [arXiv:2511.03669] we extracted the OPE of celestial CFT operator duals of positive helicity graviton and scalar particles from the Mellin transformed relevant MHV amplitudes of conformal gravity, realised as the bosonic subsector of the Berkovits-Witten theory. A soft theorem analysis of bulk MHV amplitudes established that this conformal gravity exhibits a chiral $\mathfrak{bms}_4$ symmetry on the celestial sphere with the associated $\mathfrak{sl}(2,\mathbb{R})$ current algebra, which acquires a non-trivial central extension, unlike the Einstein gravity. Here we construct a $2d$ chiral CFT free-field realisation of the relevant chiral $\mathfrak{bms}_4$ algebra in terms of three free scalars ($\phi_i$) and three $(\beta_i,\gamma_i)$ ghost pairs, and propose vertex operators for the positive-helicity graviton primary $G^{++}_{\Delta}(z,\bar{z})$ as well as the scalar primary $\Phi_{\Delta}(z,\bar{z})$, and compute their OPEs. These OPEs reproduce exactly those obtained from the bulk conformal gravity MHV amplitudes, providing a concrete celestial dual description of its MHV sector.

We propose a simplified model for the cosmological constant in string theory flux vacua motivated by type IIB and F-theory compactifications. Relative to the Bousso-Polchinski model, small vacuum energy spacing occurs in thin wafers rather than thin shells. The model is applied to the entire Schöller-Skarke database of Calabi-Yau fourfolds, which exhibit $532,600,483$ distinct sets of Hodge numbers. The overwhelming majority of those ($99.95\%$ percent for some choices of parameters) exhibit a vacuum energy spacing of~$10^{-120}$ in Planck units or smaller. Brown-Teitelboim membrane nucleation transitions can populate this landscape of flux vacua. In the thin-wall approximation, and ignoring gravitational corrections, we find that the bubble transitions are always dominated by giant leaps in flux space. The age of the universe places a bound on Calabi-Yau topology that is satisfied for the entire Schöller-Skarke database.

In the bottom-up approach to celestial holography, it is tempting to define celestial amplitudes by transforming momentum-space amplitudes order by order in perturbation theory. We test this prescription in the exactly solvable two-dimensional Sinh-Gordon model. Because the full non-perturbative S-matrix is known, we can compare two operations directly: first transform and then expand, or first expand and then transform. They do not agree, already at leading nontrivial order in the coupling. More broadly, this suggests that naive term-by-term celestial transforms should not be assumed valid in generic quantum field theories with asymptotic weak-coupling expansions. This has an immediate consequence for proposed CCFT duals: if one tries to test them by taking celestial transforms of perturbative bulk amplitudes term-by-term, a mismatch need not falsify the proposal. This makes bottom-up tests of celestial dualities far more subtle than one might have expected.

We analytically calculate the all-loop bare perturbative part of the four-quark Bethe-Salpeter kernel using modern scattering amplitude methods. We work to subleading order in the large number of quark flavors approximation of massless Quantum Chromodynamics, which simultaneously makes an all-loop calculation feasible, is systematically improvable, and preserves asymptotic freedom. It also allows for avoiding the ambiguity of choosing a truncation scheme in Dyson-Schwinger equations. We exploit state-of-the-art methods in Integration-By-Parts reduction of Lorentz scalar Feynman integrals into a minimal Master Integral basis, and direct integration into Generalized Polylogarithms. As a byproduct of our calculation, we also provide the result for the gluon and quark propagators. We discuss a path towards nonperturbative formulation and potential future phenomenological applications.

Some of the simplest wormhole solutions involve massless scalar fields that take imaginary values. Massless fields can be interpreted as coupling constants in asymptotically flat or asymptotically AdS gravity theories. We argue that wormhole effects imply an imaginary distance bound, an upper limit for the analytic continuation of the theory to imaginary values of these couplings. In string theory examples, we find explicit effects that render the low-energy theory invalid either before or precisely at this wormhole limit. We argue that the existence of such effects enforcing the distance bound is a general feature of string theories containing wormholes. In some cases, the bounds we discuss coincide with the weak gravity conjecture, and with the Kontsevich-Segal-Witten condition on complex metrics.

We derive Carrollian fermionic actions using the null reduction method from Bargmann spacetimes. In the Lorentzian light-cone formulation, the Dirac spinor naturally decomposes into dynamical and constrained degrees of freedom $-$ the so-called `good' and `bad' fermions $\Psi_{(\pm)}$. These light-cone projections are intrinsically adapted to the null frame and, unlike the chiral decomposition into left- and right-handed spinors $\Psi_{L(R)}$, are valid in arbitrary spacetime dimensions, both even and odd. As in the case of bosons, the magnetic Carroll sector for fermions is governed by the dynamical modes of the parent theory, while the electric sector arises from the constrained modes. Upon deforming to a Bargmann spacetime, these constraints are removed, promoting the `bad' fermions to dynamical modes that describe the electric Carroll fermions. We construct the Clifford algebra on the Carroll manifold through its embedding in the ambient Bargmann manifold, and obtain both electric and magnetic Carroll fermion actions from a single Bargmann-invariant Dirac action. We analyze the canonical structure of both theories, establish their invariance under Carroll transformations, and compute the corresponding two-point functions, which exhibit the expected behavior in both sectors. We conclude with some comments on the quantization of these Carrollian theories.

Motivated by recent proposals relating non-supersymmetric Type 0A theory to M-theory compactified on a singular wedge geometry, we study an M-theory compactification on a seven-manifold with G_2 structure, realized as a deformed K3 fibration over a compact three-manifold. In the Morrison–Vafa limit, the deformed K3 may be described locally as a non-trivial torus fibration over a base that is itself a pinched circle fibered over an interval. Once the doubled-spectrum decomposition and the local pinched structure are specified, we show that the G_2 torsion classes provide a natural and efficient way to characterize both the torsion of the seven-manifold and the resulting supersymmetry breaking in four dimensions. Reducing the system to ten dimensions in two inequivalent ways leads respectively to Type 0A and Type 0 heterotic theories compactified on two different non-Kahler manifolds, for which the SU(3) torsion classes furnish the appropriate mathematical description. In particular, we argue that the pinching deformation lies in the 27 of G_2, and that under the two reductions it is distributed differently into the W_2 and W_3 torsion classes of the corresponding SU(3) structures. In the supersymmetric limit, and under suitable assumptions, the two resulting theories may become U-dual to one another. Away from that limit, however, we argue that any such duality should be treated with considerable caution.

We prove a singularity theorem in semiclassical gravity without assuming global hyperbolicity or the null energy/curvature condition; the former is replaced by the weaker causality conditions of stable causality and past reflectivity, and the latter is replaced as is standard by the Generalized Second Law. This establishes in particular that the standard models of evaporating black holes are singular - i.e. they are null geodesically incomplete.