The Phantom Term in Open String Field Theory
  We show that given any two classical solutions in open string field theory and a singular gauge transformation relating them, it is possible to write the second solution as a gauge transformation of the first plus a singular, projector-like state which describes the shift in the open string background between the two solutions. This is the "phantom term." We give some applications in the computation of gauge invariant observables. 
Theodore Erler, Carlo Maccaferri
hep-th