Lie 3-algebra and multiple M2-branes

Motivated by the recent proposal of an N = 8 supersymmetric action for multiple M2-branes, we study the Lie 3-algebra in detail. In particular, we focus on the fundamental identity and the relation with Nambu-Poisson bracket. Some new algebras not known in the literature are found. Next we consider cubic matrix representations of Lie 3-algebras. We show how to obtain higher dimensional representations by tensor products for a generic 3-algebra. A criterion of reducibility is presented. We also discuss the application of Lie 3-algebra to the membrane physics, including the Basu-Harvey equation and the Bagger-Lambert model.