OPEN STRING ON SYMMETRIC PRODUCT

Abstract

We discuss some basic properties of the open string on the symmetric product which is supposed to describe the open string field theory in discrete light-cone quantization (DLCQ). We first derive the consistent twisted boundary conditions for Annulus/Möbius/Klein Bottle diagrams and give the explicit form of the corresponding amplitude. They have the interpretation as the long open (or closed) string amplitude but the world sheet topology viewed from the short string and from the long string is in general different. Boundary (cross-cap) states of the short string are classified into three categories, the boundary (cross-cap) states of the long string and the "joint" state which connects two strings. The partition function has the typical structure of the string field theory in DLCQ. Tadpole condition is also analyzed and gives a reasonable gauge group SO(213).