Ho\v{r}ava-Witten theory on ${\mathbf{S}}^1\vee{\mathbf{S}}^1$ as type 0 orientifold

Abstract

We investigate dualities between ${\mathbf{Z}}_2$ quotients of recently proposed compactifications of M-theory on `quantum geometries' of the form ${\mathbf{S}}^1\vee{\mathbf{S}}^1$ and 10d orientifolds of type 0A and 0B string theories. In particular, we relate the Ho\v{r}ava-Witten theory on ${\mathbf{S}}^1\vee{\mathbf{S}}^1$ to a 0B orientifold with gauge group $SO(16)^4$. The resulting dictionary provides a geometric explanation for characteristic features of the 0B orientifold, such as the doubling of the gauge group, while the perturbative spectrum of the 0B orientifold indicates the emergence of novel M-theoretic degrees of freedom associated with the junction point. The 0B orientifold further reveals the existence of two variants of the theory on ${\mathbf{S}}^1\vee{\mathbf{S}}^1$, corresponding to equal vs opposite (i.e., standard vs Fabinger-Ho\v{r}ava) orientations of the $E_8$ walls. We also analyze additional 0A and 0B orientifolds whose open string sectors do not arise from higher-dimensional gauge fields in M-theory and whose microscopic interpretation remains an open problem.