Particle actions and brane tensions from double and exceptional geometry

Abstract

Massless particles in n + 1 dimensions lead to massive particles in n dimensions on Kaluza-Klein reduction. In string theory, wrapped branes lead to multiplets of massive particles in n dimensions, in representations of a duality group G. By encoding the masses of these particles in auxiliary worldline scalars, also transforming under G, we write an action which resembles that for a massless particle on an extended spacetime. We associate this extended spacetime with that appearing in double field theory and exceptional field theory, and formulate a version of the action which is invariant under the generalised diffeomorphism symmetry of these theories. This provides a higher-dimensional perspective on the origin of mass and tension in string theory and M-theory. Finally, we consider the reduction of exceptional field theory on a twisted torus, which is known to give the massive IIA theory of Romans. In this case, our particle action leads naturally to the action for a D0 brane in massive IIA. Here an extra vector field is present on the worldline, whose origin in exceptional field theory is a vector field introduced to ensure invariance under generalised diffeomorphisms.