Abstract. The MSSM can arise as an orientifold of a pyramid-like quiver in the context of intersecting D-branes. Here we consider quiver realizations of the MSSM which can emerge at the bottom of a duality cascade. We classify all possible minimal ways this can be done by allowing only one extra node. It turns out that this requires extending the geometry of the pyramid to an octahedron. The MSSM at the bottom of the cascade arises in one of two possible ways, with the extra node disappearing either via Higgsing or confinement. Remarkably, the quiver of the Higgsing scenario turns out to be nothing but the quiver version of the left-right symmetric extension of the MSSM. In the minimal confining scenario the duality cascade can proceed if and only if there is exactly one up/down Higgs pair. Moreover, the symmetries of the octahedron naturally admit an automorphism of the quiver which solves a version of the μ problem precisely when there are an odd number of generations.

Key words: Superstring Vacua; Supersymmetry and Duality; Intersecting branes models; Gauge-gravity correspondence

E-print number: 0711.0387
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Received 30 March 2008, accepted for publication 19 May 2008
Published 4 June 2008