3
$\begingroup$

Having studied supersymmetry in $d=4$, my understanding is that we count supersymmetries by the number of pair of complex supercharges $$ Q_\alpha^I = \begin{pmatrix} Q_1^I \\ Q_2^I \end{pmatrix}~,~ \bar{Q}_{\dot{\alpha}}^I = \begin{pmatrix} \bar{Q}_{\dot{1}}^I \\ \bar{Q}_{\dot{2}}^I \end{pmatrix} $$ which are Weyl spinors and hence each has 2 complex off-shell degree of freedoms (dof) and 1 complex on-shell dof. Minimal supersymmetric models have $I=1$, and are called as $\mathcal{N}=1$ susy models. My questions are as follows

  1. When we say that $\mathcal{N}=1$ susy models in $d=4$ has $4\mathcal{N}$ real supercharges (see e.g. here), is it because $Q_\alpha$ has $4$ off-shell real dof, or because $Q_\alpha$ and $\bar{Q}_{\dot{\alpha}}$ have a combined total of $4$ on-shell real dof ? I think the second one makes more sense because supercharges are Noether charges which are conserved only on-shell.

  2. On the other hand, in $d=1+1$, susy models containing $4$ complex supercharges $Q_+$, $Q_-$, $\bar{Q}_+$, $\bar{Q}_-$ are said to have $\mathcal{N}=(2,2)$ supersymmetry (wiki) , i.e. for this case one counts each single supercharge instead of pairs in contrast to $d=4$ case. So, why is this difference in the conventions ?

$\endgroup$
2
  • $\begingroup$ on-shell and off-shell refers to whether something satisfies equations of motion or not. How would a symmetry generator/operator satisfy equations of motion? Also, $Q$ and $\bar{Q}$ are complex conjugates of each other, they are not independent $\endgroup$
    – Kosm
    Commented Sep 26, 2020 at 22:11
  • $\begingroup$ I guess you are hundred percent right. They are just some spinors but nothing to do with Dirac's equation or any other equation, right ? Then, we should say Q has 4 real dof and since $\bar{Q}$ is just adjoint of that we get $4\mathcal{N}$ real supercharges in total. $\endgroup$
    – chaveroche
    Commented Sep 27, 2020 at 5:36

0

Your Answer

By clicking “Post Your Answer”, you agree to our terms of service and acknowledge you have read our privacy policy.