Emergent higher-form symmetry from type IIB superstring theory

Abstract

We investigate a higher-form symmetry in type IIB superstring theory, which possesses an ${\rm SL}(2,\mathbb{Z})$ symmetry. From the point of view of the low-energy effective field theory, the ${\rm SL}(2,\mathbb{Z})$ symmetry is treated as a gauge symmetry. Hence, an $8$-form global symmetry $\mathbb{Z}_{12}^{[8]}$ emerges as a quantum symmetry. In this paper, we present an explicit construction of the topological operator associated with the $\mathbb{Z}_{12}^{[8]}$ symmetry. In this construction, the discriminant $\Delta(\tau)$ plays a central role. As a result, it becomes manifest that $\mathbb{Z}_{12}^{[8]}$ is the solitonic symmetry of $7$-branes. Furthermore, taking into account the extensions of the duality group, we also discuss what global symmetries emerge when considering not ${\rm SL}(2,\mathbb{Z})$ but ${\rm Mp}(2,\mathbb{Z})$, ${\rm GL}(2,\mathbb{Z})$, and ${\rm Pin}^+({\rm GL}(2,\mathbb{Z}))={\rm GL}^+(2,\mathbb{Z})$.