A No-Go Theorem for M5-brane Theory

Abstract: The BLG model for multiple M2-branes motivates an M5-brane theory with a novel gauge symmetry defined by the Nambu-Poisson structure. This Nambu-Poisson gauge symmetry for an M5-brane in large C-field background can be matched, on double dimension reduction, with the Poisson limit of the noncommutative gauge symmetry for a D4-brane in B-field background. Naively, one expects that there should exist a certain deformation of the Nambu-Poisson structure to match with the full noncommutative gauge symmetry including higher order terms. However, We prove the no-go theorem that there is no way to deform the Nambu-Poisson gauge symmetry, even without assuming the existence of a deformation of Nambu-Poisson bracket, to match with the noncommutative gauge symmetry in 4+1 dimensions to all order, regardless of how the double dimension reduction is implemented.