The half-twisted orbifold sigma model and the Chiral de Rham complex

Abstract

In this paper, we study the perturbative aspects of the half-twisted variant of Witten's topological A-model on a complex orbifold X/G, where G is an isometry group of X. The objective is to furnish a purely physical interpretation of the mathematical theory of the Chiral de Rham complex on orbifolds recently constructed by Frenkel and Szczesny in [Chiral de Rham complex and orbifolds, Preprint, arXiv: math.AG/ 0307181]. In turn, one can obtain a novel understanding of the holomorphic (twisted) N = 2 superconformal structure underlying the untwisted and twisted sectors of the quantum sigma model, purely in terms of an obstruction (or a lack thereof) to a global definition of the relevant physical operators which correspond to G-invariant sections of the sheaf of Chiral de Rham complex on X. Explicit examples are provided to help illustrate this connection, and comparisons with their non-orbifold counterparts are also made in an aim to better understand the action of the G-orbifolding on the original half-twisted sigma model on X. © 2008 International Press.