Modeling multiple M2-branes

Abstract

We investigate the worldvolume theory that describes $N$ coincident M2-branes ending on an M5-brane. We argue that the fields that describe the transverse spacetime coordinates take values in a nonassociative algebra. We postulate a set of supersymmetry transformations and find that they close into a novel gauge symmetry. We propose a three-dimensional $N=2$ supersymmetric action to describe the truncation of the full theory to the scalar and spinor fields, and show how a Basu-Harvey fuzzy funnel arises as the Bogomol'nyi-Prasad-Sommerfield solution to this theory.