The Physics of 2-d Stringy Spacetimes

Abstract

We examine the two-dimensional spacetimes that emerge from string theory. We find all the solutions with no tachyons, and show that the only non-trivial solution is the black hole spacetime. We examine the role of duality in this picture. We then explore the thermodynamics of these solutions which is complicated by the fact that only in two spacetime dimensions is it impossible to redefine the dilaton field in terms of a canonical scalar field. Finally, we extend our analysis to the heterotic string, and briefly comment on exact, as opposed to perturbative, solutions.