Index Theorems on Torsional Geometries

Abstract

We study various topological invariants on a torsional geometry in the presence of a totally anti-symmetric torsion H under the closed condition dH = 0, which appears in string theory compactification scenarios. By using the identification between the Clifford algebra on the geometry and the canonical quantization condition of fermions in quantum mechanics, we construct N=1 quantum mechanical sigma model in the Hamiltonian formalism. We extend this model to N=2 system, equipped with the totally anti-symmetric tensor associated with the torsion on the target space geometry. Next we construct transition elements in the Lagrangian path integral formalism and apply them to the analyses of the Witten indices in supersymmetric systems. We explicitly show the formulation of the Dirac index on the torsional manifold which has already been studied. We also formulate the Euler characteristic and the Hirzebruch signature on the torsional manifold.