D2-D8 system with massive strings and the Lifshitz spacetimes

A bstract The Romans’ type IIA supergravity allows fundamental strings to have explicit mass term at the tree level. We show that there exists a (F1,D2,D8) brane configuration which gives rise to Lif 4 (2) × R 1 × S 5 vacua supported by the massive strings. The presence of D8-branes naturally excites massive fundamental strings. A compactification on circle relates these Lifshitz massive type-IIA background with the axion-flux Lif 4 (2) × S 1 × S 5 vacua in ordinary type-IIB theory. The massive T-duality in eight dimensions further relates them to yet another L i f ˜ 4 2 × S 1 × S 5 vacua constituted by (F1,D0,D6) system in ordinary type IIA theory. The latter vacua after compactification to four dimensions generate two ‘distinct’ electric charges and a constant magnetic field, all living over 2-dimensional plane. This somewhat reminds us of a similar set up in quantum Hall systems.