Heterotic particle models from various perspectives

We consider the compactification of heterotic string theory on toroidal orbifolds and their resolutions. In the framework of gauged linear sigma models we develop realizations of such spaces, allowing to continously vary the moduli and thus smoothly interpolate between different corners of the theory. This way all factorizable orbifold resolutions as well as some non-factorizable ones can be obtained. We find that for a given geometry there are many model which realize it as a target space, differing in their complexity. We explore regions of moduli space which otherwise would not be accessible. In particular we are interested in the orbifold regime, where exact string calculations are possible, and the large volume regime, where techniques of supergravity compactification can be applied. By comparing these two theories and matching the spectra we find evidence for non-perturbative effects which interpolate between these regimes.