 Unprojected low levels of the open RNS string

Before the GSO projection, the Neveu–Schwarz sector has string oscillator levels $0,1/2,1,3/2$, with physical multiplicities $1,8,36,128$ in ten-dimensional light-cone gauge in string theory. The eight transverse worldsheet Majorana fermions supply eight single ${\psi }_{-1/2}$ states. Level one has eight ${\alpha }_{-1}$ states and $\left(\genfrac{}{}{0ex}{}{8}{2}\right)=28$ pairs of distinct ${\psi }_{-1/2}$ modes. Level $3/2$ has $8$ single ${\psi }_{-3/2}$ modes, $8\cdot 8$ mixed boson–fermion modes and $\left(\genfrac{}{}{0ex}{}{8}{3}\right)=56$ triples. Their squared masses are respectively $-1/(2{\alpha }^{\prime }),0,1/(2{\alpha }^{\prime }),1/{\alpha }^{\prime }$. In the Ramond sector, the Ramond zero-mode Clifford algebra gives a sixteen-dimensional ground space. At level one, ${\alpha }_{-1}^i$ and ${\psi }_{-1}^i$ each provide $8\cdot 16$ states, hence multiplicities $16,256$ at squared masses $0,1/{\alpha }^{\prime }$. No half-integer Ramond levels occur. The GSO projection keeps odd NS fermion number and one total Ramond chirality, giving $8$ bosons and $8$ fermions at zero mass, then $128$ of each at the first massive level.