The Cosmological Constant and Dark Energy from Non-Supersymmetric String Theory

Add to your list(s) Download to your calendar using vCal

• Susha Parameswaran (University of Liverpool)
• Tuesday 17 February 2026, 11:00-12:00
• Ray Dolby Center -- Seminar Room: D2.002 .

If you have a question about this talk, please contact Dr Paul Swallow.

Why doesn’t the vacuum energy implied by quantum field theory—through the known Standard Model fields and their radiative corrections—curve spacetime catastrophically, driving either an exponentially rapid expansion or collapse? Supersymmetry is known to ameliorate this long-standing Cosmological Constant Problem, but only down to the scale set by the susy-breaking mass splittings; at least ~TeV for the visible sector. String theory offers new possibilities. I will present an explicit non-supersymmetric string construction in which the open-string (particle physics) contributions to the one-loop vacuum energy exactly cancel between a visible brane sector and a symmetry-enforced hidden mirror sector, whilst the remaining closed-string (gravitational) contributions are suppressed in the size of one or two large extra dimensions (a.k.a. “dark dimensions”) and can naturally lie near the observed Dark Energy scale. I’ll conclude by discussing the key observational challenges and opportunities of the scenario.

This talk is part of the Cavendish HEP Seminars series.

This talk is included in these lists:

• All Cavendish Laboratory Seminars
• All Talks (aka the CURE list)
• Cavendish HEP Seminars
• Centre for Health Leadership and Enterprise
• Featured lists
• ME Seminar
• Neurons, Fake News, DNA and your iPhone: The Mathematics of Information
• Ray Dolby Center -- Seminar Room: D2.002
• School of Physical Sciences
• Thin Film Magnetic Talks
• few29

Note that ex-directory lists are not shown.