The no-ghost theorem in curved backgrounds with a timelike u(1): NSR string

Abstract

It is well-known that the standard no-ghost theorem is valid as long as the background has the light-cone directions. We prove the no-ghost theorem for the NSR string when only the timelike direction is flat. This is done by the BRST quantization, using the technique of Frenkel, Garland and Zuckerman and our previous results for the bosonic string. The theorem actually applies as long as the timelike direction is written as a u(1) SCFT.