Holographic RG flows in six dimensional F(4) gauged supergravity

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We study critical points of F(4) gauged supergravity in six dimensions coupled to three vector multiplets. Scalar fields are described by R+× SO(4,3)/SO(4)× SO(3) coset space, and the gauge group is given by SO(3)ᵣ× SO(3) with SO(3)ᵣ being the R-symmetry. The maximally supersymmetric critical point with all scalars vanishing preserves the full SO(3)ᵣ× SO(3) symmetry. This is dual to a superconformal field theories (SCFT₅) arising from a near horizon geometry of the D4-D8 brane system in type I' theory with an enhanced global symmetry E₁ SU(2). Apart from this trivial critical point, we identify a new supersymmetric critical point preserving the full supersymmetry with the SO(3)ᵣ× SO(3) symmetry broken to its diagonal subgroup. This critical point should correspond to a new SCFT in five dimensions. We study an RG flow solution interpolating between the SCFT with E₁ symmetry and the new supersymmetric critical point. The flow describes a supersymmetric deformation driven by a vacuum expectation value of relevant operators of dimension 3. We identify the dual operators with the mass terms for hypermultiplet scalars in the dual field theory. The solution provides an example of analytic supersymmetric RG flows in AdS₆/CFT₅ correspondence.