Part II: Model building and deformation of orbifolds in type II string theory
Jill Ecker, Isabel Koltermann (ThEP)

The first step consists in explaining in depth the procedure of concrete model building in superstring theory. More precisely, the difficulties arising in model building and their resolution are discussed. This discussion is followed by a presentation of the models we desire to reproduce, which include the MSSM, left-right symmetric models, Pati-Salam models and SU(5) models.
In the second step the concrete deformation of orbifolds will be addressed. After a short explanation of conical singularities, a concrete deformation will be demonstrated for a very simple example. This will be generalized to a typical model used in type IIA string theory. Finally, the method to compute the volume of "3-cycles" wrapped by "D6-branes" will be explained. These volumes are proportional to the gauge couplings and can be used to test the supersymmetry condition, so it is interesting to find out how the volumes change while performing deformations of the orbifold fixed points.