Branes and supersymmetry breaking in 3D gauge theories

Abstract

It is shown that supersymmetry is spontaneously broken in certain three-dimensional supersymmetric gauge theories, by using the s-rule in their string theory realization as brane configurations. In particular, supersymmetry is broken in TV = 3 supersymmetric Yang-Mills-Chern-Simons theory with gauge group SU(n) and CS coefficient fc, as well as in its TV = 2 and N = 1 deformations, when n > \k\. In addition, supersymmetry is broken in the N = 1 mass deformation of N = 2 supersymmetric Yang-Mills theory with gauge group SU(n) and one matter multiplet when n > 1. In the latter case the breaking is induced by an instanton-generated repulsive potential.