Model building with the non-supersymmetric heterotic SO(16)xSO(16) string

Understand

In this talk we review recent investigations of the non-supersymmetric heterotic SO(16)xSO(16) string on orbifolds and smooth Calabi-Yaus.

• Using such supersymmetry preserving backgrounds allows one to re-employ commonly known model building techniques.
• We will argue that tachyons do not appear on smooth Calabi-Yaus to leading order in alpha' and g_s.
• Twisted tachyons may arise on singular orbifolds, where some of these approximations break down.