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iTHEMS-YITP workshop: "Resurgence, Matrix model, String field theory and Instantons” or Really Marvelous Sparkling Ideas
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Asia/Tokyo
Panasonic Auditorium, Yukawa Hall (YITP, Kyoto University)
Panasonic Auditorium, Yukawa Hall
YITP, Kyoto University
Description
Please be cautious of scams from individuals pretending to be travel agency employees (e.g. Global Travel Team). They may try to steal your credit card number. No travel agency will contact you directly for this workshop. If a suspicious agency or person contacts you, please confirm with us. Please ignore any emails claiming to be related to this workshop unless they are sent from the domain yukawa.kyoto-u.ac.jp or by a member of the Local Organizing Committee."
Overview
The perturbative framework of Quantum Field Theory and String Theory has been undeniably successful in describing fundamental interactions. However, it is becoming increasingly clear that a complete understanding of the physical universe—particularly concerning Quantum Gravity and the vacuum structure of string theory—lies beyond the reach of perturbative expansions. Asymptotic divergence in perturbation theory is not merely a technical barrier but a signal of rich, non-perturbative physics such as instantons and non-trivial saddle points. To define the theory rigorously and uncover the fundamental degrees of freedom in gravity, we must transcend the perturbative wall; and develop analytic tools capable of decoding the invisible sectors of the path integral.
This workshop focuses on the powerful synergy between four interconnected topics: Resurgence theory, Matrix models, String field theory, and Instantons. Recent developments have revealed that these areas are not isolated; Resurgence provides the mathematical language to unify perturbative and non-perturbative sectors, while Matrix models and String Field Theory serve as ideal laboratories for testing these ideas in stringy and holographic contexts. We will explore how D-instanton effects, open-string tachyon condensation, and the large-$N$ dynamics of matrices can be understood through a unified lens, aiming to clarify the non-perturbative definition of superstring theory/M-theory.
Coinciding with the three-month visit of Professor Xi Yin (Harvard University) to the YITP, this one-week intensive workshop aims to bring together experts to tackle these challenging problems. By combining the technical precision of formal theory with the intuitive leaps required for breakthroughs, we hope to generate what we playfully call Really Marvelous Sparkling Ideas; (RMSI). The goal is not only to share recent progress but to foster deep discussions that spark a new understanding of the non-perturbative landscape of high-energy physics.
Speakers
Amr Ahmadain
Nathan Berkovits (TBC)
Minjae Cho
Keshav Dasgupta
Gerald Dunne
Theodore Erler
Atakan Hilmi Fırat
Alexander Frenkel
Alba Grassi (TBC)
Yasuyuki Hatsuda
Nobuyuki Ishibashi
Scheinpflug Jaroslav
Manki Kim
Keisuke Konosu
Sungjay Lee
Carlo Maccaferri
Raghu Mahajan
Martin Schnabl
Yuya Tanizaki
Jojiro Totsuka-Yoshinaka
and
Many really marvelous speakers
Registration information
There will be a poster session and we encourage students and young postdocs to present a poster. Contribution talks will be selected from the poster applicants.
The registration deadline is
August 1st 2026
If you need a visa, you may need to register early (July 15th).
Acknowledgment
We will be grateful if you acknowledge this workshop in a paper which is initiated or conducted during this workshop. Here are the samples of acknowledgments:
- The authors thank RIKEN Interdisciplinary Theoretical and Mathematical Sciences Program and Yukawa Institute for Theoretical Physics at Kyoto University, where this work was initiated [completed] during "iTHEMS-YITP workshop: “Resurgence, Matrix model, String field theory and Instantons” or Really Marvelous Sparkling Ideas" (YITP-W-26-11) .
- The authors thank RIKEN Interdisciplinary Theoretical and Mathematical Sciences Program and Yukawa Institute for Theoretical Physics at Kyoto University. Discussions during "iTHEMS-YITP workshop: “Resurgence, Matrix model, String field theory and Instantons" or Really Marvelous Sparkling Ideas" (YITP-W-26-11) were useful in completing this work.
Organizers
- Yu Nakayama (YITP)
- Masazumi Honda (RIKEN i-THEMS)
- Hiroshi Kunitomo (YITP),
- Yuji Okawa (Univ. of Tokyo, Komaba)
- Xi Yin (Harvard University)
Supporting Organizations
This conference is supported by Yukawa Institute for Theoretical Physics, RIKEN iTHEMS, KAKENHI,
Contact
Registration
Registration