Wilson loops T-dual to short strings

We show that closed string solutions in the bulk of AdS space are related by T-duality to solutions representing an open string ending at the boundary of AdS. By combining the limit in which a closed string becomes small with a large boost, we find that the near-flat space short string in the bulk maps to a periodic open string world surface ending on a wavy line at the boundary. This open string solution was previously found by Mikhailov and corresponds to a time-like near-BPS Wilson loop differing by small fluctuations from a straight line. A simple relation is found between the shape of the Wilson loop and the shape of the closed string at the moment when it crosses the horizon of the Poincaré patch. As a result, the energy and spin of the closed string are encoded in properties of the Wilson loop. This suggests that closed string amplitudes with one of the closed strings falling into the Poincaré horizon should be dual to gauge theory correlators involving local operators and a Wilson loop of the T-dual (“momentum”) theory.