Making Non-Associative Algebra Associative

Abstract

Based on results about open string correlation functions, a nonassociative algebra was proposed in a recent paper for D-branes in a background with nonvanishing $H$. We show that our associative algebra obtained by quantizing the endpoints of an open string in an earlier work can also be used to reproduce the same correlation functions. The novelty of this algebra is that functions on the D-brane do not form a closed algebra. This poses a problem to define gauge transformations on such noncommutative spaces. We propose a resolution by generalizing the description of gauge transformations which naturally involves global symmetries. This can be understood in the context of matrix theory.