T-branes, monopoles and S-duality

Abstract

M2 branes probing T-brane backgrounds in M-theory with ADE surface singularities perceive deformations on their worldvolume superpotentials by monopole operators. The dynamics and moduli spaces of the resulting theories can be studied using a dual description involving conventional superpotential terms and (the dimensional reduction of) class S trinion theories. By using the S-dual description of N=2 SU(N) SQCD with 2N flavors in four dimensions, we are able to study T-branes corresponding to all minimal nilpotent orbits for the whole ADE series. Our proposed dualities are supported by the match in squashed sphere partition functions.

59 pages, 25 figures; added Section 7 where we checked the proposed duality by sphere partition function computations