paper

A Perfectoid Duality Between M-Theory and F-Theory

arXiv:2602.22503 · doi:10.1016/j.nuclphysb.2026.117355

Abstract

We present a non-singular, definition-level formulation of F-theory by replacing the traditional shrinking-fiber limit of M-theory with compactification on a tower-completed circle described using perfectoid geometry and condensed mathematics. This construction provides an intrinsic eleven-dimensional carrier for modular data and admits a canonical tilting and comparison procedure that yields elliptic geometry as an output rather than an auxiliary input. Using this framework, we establish a precise M-theory/Type IIB dictionary in the constant-coupling sector, showing how the physical axio-dilaton is fixed by eleven-dimensional geometric and topological data. The correspondence is tested at the level of the ten-dimensional bosonic effective action, including its topological couplings inherited from eleven dimensions. The tower-completed geometry naturally organizes global sectors in generalized cohomology, with charge data governed by K-theory and exhibiting a canonical prime-power torsion structure. We further show how this framework extends to varying-coupling backgrounds and duality defects, admits a natural adelic completion with prime-independence, and generalizes to higher-rank and U-duality geometries. We also discuss holographic aspects and the anomaly-refined extension of the duality group beyond the bosonic truncation. Together, these results provide a coherent, non-singular foundation for F-theory and its extensions.

arXiv comment109 pages, published in Nucl Phys B 2026

References in corpus (22)