Non-geometric string backgrounds were proposed to be related to a nonassociative deformation of the space-time geometry. In the flux formulation of double field theory (DFT), the structure of mathematically possible non-associative deformations is analyzed in detail. It is argued that on-shell there should not be any violation of associativity in the effective DFT action. For imposing either the strong or the weaker closure constraint we discuss two possible non-associative deformations of DFT featuring two different ways how on-shell associativity can still be kept.

Non-geometric flux-scaling vacua provide promising starting points to realize axion monodromy inflation via the F-term scalar potential. We show that these vacua can be uplifted to Minkowski and de Sitter by adding an D3-brane or a D-term containing geometric and non-geometric fluxes. These uplifted non-supersymmetric models are analyzed with respect to their potential to realize axion monodromy inflation self-consistently. Admitting rational values of the fluxes, we construct examples with the required hierarchy of mass scales.

The limit of families of two-dimensional conformal field theories has recently attracted attention in the context of AdS/CFT dualities. In our work we analyse the limit of N = (2, 2) superconformal minimal models when the central charge approaches c = 3. The limiting theory is a non-rational N = (2, 2) superconformal theory, in which there is a continuum of chiral primary fields. We determine the spectrum of the theory, the three-point functions on the sphere, and the disc one-point functions.

We study the four-dimensional (4D) scalar potential arising from a generalized type IIA flux superpotential including the (non-)geometric fluxes. First, we show that using a set of peculiar flux combinations, the 4D scalar potential can be formulated into a very compact form. This is what we call as the 'symplectic formulation' from which one could easily anticipate the ten-dimensional origin of the effective scalar potential. We support our formulation through an alternate derivation of the scalar potential via considering the Double Field Theory (DFT) reduction on a generic Calabi Yau orientifold. In addition, we also exemplify the insights of our formulation with explicit computations for two concrete toroidal examples using orientifolds of the complex threefolds T 6 /(Z 2 × Z 2 ) and T 6 /Z 4 .

Employing novel random and supervised scanning methods, we systematically revisit the construction of three-family $$N=1$$ N = 1 supersymmetric Pati–Salam models in Type IIA orientifolds on $$\mathbf{T}^6/({\mathbb {Z}}_2\times {\mathbb {Z}}_2)$$ T 6 / ( Z 2 × Z 2 ) with intersecting D6-branes. Arising from the stacks of D6-branes with U(n) gauge symmetries, the Pati–Salam gauge symmetries $$SU(4)_C\times SU(2)_L \times SU(2)_R$$ S U ( 4 ) C × S U ( 2 ) L × S U ( 2 ) R can be broken down to the Standard Model via D-brane splitting as well as D- and F-flatness preserving Higgs mechanism. Also, the hidden sector contains USp(n) branes, which are parallel with the orientifold planes or their $${{\mathbb {Z}}_2}$$ Z 2 images. We find that the Type II T-duality in the previous study is not an equivalent relation in Pati–Salam model building if the model is not invariant under $$SU(2)_L$$ S U ( 2 ) L and $$SU(2)_R$$ S U ( 2 ) R exchange, and provides a way to obtain new models. We systematically construct the new models with three families, which usually do not have gauge coupling unification at the string scale. We for the first time construct the Pati–Salam models with at least one wrapping number whose absolute value reaching 5. In particular, for one large wrapping number equal to 5, we find that one kind of model carries more refined gauge couplings, and thus with more possibilities to have approximate gauge coupling unification.