Modern Supersymmetry : Dynamics and Duality

The book provides a detailed survey of the modern developments in supersymmetry that are essential preparation for a graduate student or researcher intending to enter into particle theory or string theory.

The book begins with a brief review of supersymmetry, and the construction of the minimal supersymmetric standard model and approaches to supersymmetry breaking. General non-perturbative methods are also reviewed leading to the development of holomorphy and the Affleck-Dine-Seiberg superpotential as powerful tools for analysing supersymmetric theories. Seiberg duality is discussed in detail, with many example applications provided, with special attention paid to its use in understanding dynamical supersymmetry breaking. The Seiberg-Witten theory of monopoles is introduced through the analysis of simpler N=1 analogues. Superconformal field theories are described along with the most recent development known as "a-maximization". Supergravity theories are examined in 4, 10, and 11 dimensions, allowing for a discussion of anomaly and gaugino mediation, and setting the stage for the anti-de Sitter/conformal field theory correspondence. This book is unique in containing an overview of the important developments in supersymmetry since the publication of "Supersymmetry and Supergravity" by Wess and Bagger. It also strives to cover topics that are of interest to both formal and phenomenological theorists.