MILLIMETER-RANGE FORCES IN SUPERSTRING THEORIES WITH WEAK-SCALE COMPACTIFICATION

We show that theories in which supersymmetry is broken via Scherk-Schw arz compactification at the weak scale possess at least one scalar par ticle with Compton wavelength in the millimetre range, which mediates a force with strength 1/3 of gravity. Such forces are going to be expl ored in upcoming experiments using micro-electromechanical systems or cantilever technology. We also present a simple way of understanding s ome decoupling aspects of these theories by analogy with finite-temper ature field theory. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science B.V.