Quantum field theory on a cosmological, quantum space-time
Abhay Ashtekar, Wojciech Kaminski, Jerzy Lewandowski
备注：
19 pages, no figures; A reference and footnote added, PACs and minor typos corrected; a significant technical clarification added to section IV.A; minor typos corrected; two references added
In loop quantum cosmology, Friedmann-LeMaitre-Robertson-Walker (FLRW) space-times arise as well-defined approximations to specific \emph{quantum} geometries. We initiate the development of a quantum theory of test scalar fields on these quantum geometries. Emphasis is on the new conceptual ingredients required in the transition from classical space-time backgrounds to quantum space-times. These include a `relational time' a la Leibnitz, the emergence of the Hamiltonian operator of the test field from the quantum constraint equation, and ramifications of the quantum fluctuations of the background geometry on the resulting dynamics. The familiar quantum field theory on classical FLRW models arises as a well-defined reduction of this more fundamental theory.
It is shown how cosmological perturbation theory arises from a fully quantized perturbative theory of quantum gravity. Central for the derivation is a non-perturbative concept of gauge-invariant local observables by means of which perturbative invariant expressions of arbitrary order are generated. In particular, in the linearised theory, first order gauge-invariant observables familiar from cosmological perturbation theory are recovered. Explicit expressions of second order quantities are presented as well.
We discuss how the incorporation of a cosmological constant affects the perturbative quantization of (effective) Quantum General Relativity. To this end, we derive the gravitational Slavnov--Taylor identities and appropriate renormalization conditions for the cosmological constant. Additionally, we calculate the corresponding Feynman rules for any vertex valence and with general gauge parameter. Furthermore, we provide the BRST setup and generate the Faddeev--Popov ghost and the symmetric ghost via a gauge fixing fermion and a gauge fixing boson, respectively. Finally, we study the transversal…
Prominent approaches to quantum gravity struggle when it comes to incorporating a positive cosmological constant in their models. Using quantization of a complex $\mathrm{SL}(2,\mathbb{C})$ Chern-Simons theory we include a cosmological constant, of either sign, into a model of quantum gravity.
Noncommutative spacetimes are widely believed to model some properties of the quantum structure of spacetime at the Planck regime. In this contribution the construction of (anti-)de Sitter noncommutative spacetimes obtained through quantum groups is reviewed. In this approach the quantum deformation parameter $z$ is related to a Planck scale, and the cosmological constant $Λ$ plays the role of a second deformation parameter of geometric nature, whose limit $Λ\to 0$ provides the corresponding noncommutative Minkowski spacetimes.
In the context of group field theory condensate cosmology, we clarify the extraction of cosmological variables from the microscopic quantum gravity degrees of freedom. We show that an important implication of the second quantized formalism is the dependence of cosmological variables and equations on the quantum gravitational atomic number N (number of spin network vertices/elementary simplices). We clarify the relation of the effective cosmological equations with loop quantum cosmology, understood as an effective (hydrodynamic-like) approximation of a more fundamental quantum gravity theory. B…
We regard the cosmological fluid within an exponentially expanding FLRW spacetime as the probability fluid of a nonrelativistic Schroedinger field. The scalar Schroedinger particle so described has a mass equal to the total (baryonic plus dark) matter content of the Universe. This procedure allows a description of the cosmological fluid by means of the operator formalism of nonrelativistic quantum theory. Under the assumption of radial symmetry, a quantum operator proportional to $1/r^2$ represents the cosmological constant $Λ$. The experimentally measured value of $Λ$ is one of the eigenvalue…
Cosmological perturbations are generally described by quantum fields on (curved but) classical space-times. While this strategy has a large domain of validity, it can not be justified in the quantum gravity era where curvature and matter densities are of Planck scale. Using techniques from loop quantum gravity, the standard theory of cosmological perturbations is extended to overcome this limitation. The new framework sharpens conceptual issues by distinguishing between the true and apparent trans-Planckian difficulties and provides sufficient conditions under which the true difficulties can b…
A homogeneous and isotropic cosmological model with a positive cosmological constant is considered. The matter sector is given by a massless scalar field, which can be used as an internal time to deparametrize the theory. The idea is to study and compare the evolutions of a quantum and a classical probability distribution by performing a decomposition of both distributions in their corresponding moments. For the numerical analysis an initial peaked Gaussian state in the volume will be chosen. Furthermore, in order to check the robustness of certain results, as initial state both a slightly def…
We have recently presented a manifestly local and general coordinate invariant formulation of a nonlocal approach to the cosmological constant problem which has been proposed by Carroll and Remmen. In this article, based on our formulation, we investigate some quantum aspects of this approach to the cosmological constant problem. In particular, we explicitly evaluate quantum effects to the effective cosmological constant from matter fields at one-loop level, and show that the effective cosmological constant receives radiative corrections and is not stable against quantum corrections so that it…
A two dimensional matter coupled model of quantum gravity is studied in the Dirac approach to constrained dynamics in the presence of a cosmological constant. It is shown that after partial fixing to the conformal gauge the requirement of a quantum realization of the conformal algebra for physical quantum states of the fields naturally constrains the cosmological constant to take values in a well determined and mostly discrete spectrum. Furthermore the contribution of the quantum fluctuations of the single dynamical degree of freedom in the gravitational sector, namely the conformal mode, to t…
Loop Quantum Gravity (LQG) is an attempt to describe the quantum gravity regime. Introducing a non-zero cosmological constant $Λ$ in this context has been a withstanding problem. Other approaches, such as Chern-Simons gravity, suggest that quantum groups can be used to introduce $Λ$ in the game. Not much is known when defining LQG with a quantum group. Tensor operators can be used to construct observables in any type of discrete quantum gauge theory with a classical/quantum gauge group. We illustrate this by constructing explicitly geometric observables for LQG defined with a quantum group and…
It is shown that in the model [3,4] of quantum mechanics besides probability amplitudes, the Planck constant and the Fock space, the cosmological constant also appear in the natural way. The Poisson brackets are generalized for the case of kinetics.
We consider the problem of extracting physical predictions from the wave function of the universe in quantum cosmological models. We state the features of quantum cosmology an interpretational scheme should confront. We discuss the Everett interpretation, and extensions of it, and their application to quantum cosmology. We review the steps that are normally taken in the process of extracting predictions from solutions to the Wheeler-DeWitt equation for quantum cosmological models. Some difficulties and their possible resolution are discussed. We conclude that the usual wave function-based appr…
We discuss the relational strategy to solve the problem of time in quantum gravity and different ways in which it could be implemented, pointing out in particular the fundamentally new dimension that the problem takes in a quantum gravity context in which spacetime and geometry are understood as emergent. We realize concretely the relational strategy we have advocated in the context of the tensorial group field theory formalism for quantum gravity, leading to the extraction of an effective relational cosmological dynamics from quantum geometric models. We analyze in detail the emergent cosmolo…
We apply the de Broglie-Bohm interpretation to the Wheeler-DeWitt equation for the quantum FRW cosmological model with a minimal massless scalar field. We find that the quantum FRW cosmological model has quantum potential dominated solutions that avoid the initial and the final cosmological singularities. It is suggested that the quantum potential and the back-reaction of geometry and matter fields may change the property of the cosmological singularities of the Universe.
The cosmological constant problem is one of the long-standing issues of modern physics. While we can measure the value of the cosmological constant with great accuracy, we are not able to calculate it in a coherent theoretical framework. On the contrary the theoretical predictions in Quantum Field Theory are radically different from observations. This disagreement is a hint of the difficult conciliation of Quantum Mechanics and General Relativity in a theory of Quantum Gravity. Current approaches to the cosmological constant problem, in particular, do not account for the quantum nature of the …
Using technique of supersymmetric quantum mechanics we present new cosmological quantum solution, in the regime for FRW cosmological model using a barotropic perfect fluid as matter field.
A finite and unitary nonlocal formulation of quantum gravity is applied to the cosmological constant problem. The entire functions in momentum space at the graviton-standard model particle loop vertices generate an exponential suppression of the vacuum density and the cosmological constant to produce agreement with their observational bounds.
We show that Dark Matter consisting of ultralight bosons in a Bose-Einstein condensate induces, via its quantum potential, a small positive cosmological constant which matches the observed value. This explains its origin and why the densities of Dark Matter and Dark Energy are approximately equal.
With a view towards applications for de Sitter, we construct the multi-parametric $q$-deformation of the $so(5,\IC)$ algebra using the Faddeev-Reshetikhin-Takhtadzhyan (FRT) formalism.
We show that a positive cosmological constant is incompatible with the quantum-corpuscular resolution of de Sitter metric in form of a coherent state. The reason is very general and is due to the quantum self-destruction of the coherent state because of the scattering of constituent graviton quanta. This process creates an irreversible quantum clock, which precludes eternal de Sitter. It also eliminates the possibility of Boltzmann brains and Poincare recurrences. This effect is expected to be part of any microscopic theory that takes into account the quantum corpuscular structure of the cosmo…
We investigate quantum corrections for a cosmological solution of the string effective action. Starting point is a classical solution containing an antisymmetric tensor field, a dilaton and a modulus field which has singularities in the scalar fields. As a first step we quantize the scalar fields near the singularity with the result that the singularities disappear and that in general non-perturbative quantum corrections form a potential in the scalar fields.
This papers offers a critical discussion on the procedure by which Loop Quantum Cosmology (LQC) is constructed from the full Loop Quantum Gravity (LQG) theory. Revising recent issues in preserving SU(2) symmetry when quantizing the isotropic Universe, we trace a new perspective in approaching the cosmological problem within quantum geometry. The cosmological sector of LQG is reviewed and a critical point of view on LQC is presented. It is outlined how a polymer-like scale for quantum cosmology can be predicted from a proper fundamental graph underlying the homogeneous and isotropic continuous …
Coupling any interacting quantum mechanical system to gravity in one dimension requires the cosmological constant to belong to the matter energy spectrum and thus to be quantized, even though the gravity sector is free of any quantum dynamics, while physical states are also confined to the subspace of matter quantum states whose energy coincides with the cosmological constant value. These general facts are illustrated through some simple examples. The physical projector quantization approach readily leads to the correct representation of such systems, whereas other approaches relying on gauge …
The arguments of statistical nature for the existence of constituents of active gravitational masses are presented. The present paper proposes a basis for microscopic theory of universal gravitation. Questions like the relation of cosmological constant and quantum theory, black hole radiance and the nature of inertia are addressed. This paper is the second in the series of papers published in Acta Physica Polonica {\bf B}.
In a previous work we have exhibited a clear description of the quantum-to-classical transition of cosmological quantum fluctuations in the inflationary scenario using the de Broglie-Bohm quantum theory. These fluctuations are believed to seed the small inhomogeneities, which are then responsible for the formation of large scale structures. In this work we show that using the de Broglie-Bohm theory it is also possible to describe the quantum-to-classical transition of primordial perturbations which takes place around a bouncing phase, even if the latter is caused by quantum effects due to the …
We study the pure and thermal states of quantized scalar and tensor perturbations in various epochs of Universe evolution. We calculate the density matrix of non-relativistic particles in an environment of these perturbations. We show that particle's motion can be described by a stochastic equation with a noise coming from the cosmological environment. We investigate the squeezing of Gaussian wave packets in different epochs and its impact upon the noise of quantized cosmological perturbations.
We describe a mechanism that drives the Cosmological Constant to zero value. This mechanism is based on the quantum triviality of $λϕ^4$ field theory and works in $AdS$ space. Some subtleties of the model are discussed.
Based on a recently proposed holographic relationship between spin networks and superstrings, we find out numerical values for the matter and cosmological constant density parameters given by $Ω_{m0} = 0.3311$ and $Ω_{Λ0} = 0.6689$, respectively. Such values are in good approximation with the Planck 2018 cosmological data \cite{Aghanim:2018eyx}. Moreover, by using the current value of the Hubble parameter given by Planck 2018 collaboration, we obtain $Λ_{0} = 2.779 \times 10^{-122}$ as an estimation of the cosmological constant. Such results can be seen as possible phenomenological evidence fo…
A finite quantum gravity theory is used to resolve the cosmological constant problem. A fundamental quantum gravity scale, Λ_G \leq 10^{-3} eV, is introduced above which the quantum corrections to the vacuum energy density coupled to gravity are exponentially suppressed by a graviton vertex form factor, yielding an observationally acceptable value for the particle physics contribution to the cosmological constant. Classical Einstein gravity retains its causal behavior as well as the standard agreement with observational data.
We derive an effective dynamics for scalar cosmological perturbations from quantum gravity, in the framework of group field theory (GFT) condensate cosmology. The emergent spacetime picture is obtained from the mean field hydrodynamic regime of the fundamental theory, and physical observables are defined using a relational strategy applied at the same level of approximation, in terms of suitable collective states of the GFT field. The dynamical equations we obtain for volume and matter perturbations lead to the same solutions as those of classical general relativity in the long-wavelength, sup…
The cosmological implications of an evolutionary quantum gravity are analyzed in the context of a generic inhomogeneous model. The Schrödinger problem is formulated and solved in the presence of a scalar field, an ultrarelativistic matter and a perfect gas regarded as the dust-clock. Considering the actual phenomenology, it is shown how the evolutionary approach overlaps the Wheeler-DeWitt one.
We construct a class of theories which are scale invariant on quantum level in all orders of perturbation theory. In a subclass of these models scale invariance is spontaneously broken, leading to the existence of a massless dilaton. The applications of these results to the problem of stability of the electroweak scale against quantum corrections, to the cosmological constant problem and to dark energy are discussed.
A Bianchi type-I cosmological model in the presence of a magnetic flux along a cosmological string is considered. The first objective of this study is to investigate Einstein equations using a tractable assumption usually accepted in the literature. Quantum effects of the present cosmological model are examined in the framework of loop quantum cosmology. Finally we draw a parallel between the classical and quantum approaches.
We study quantum cosmology with conformal matter comprising a perfect radiation fluid and a number of conformally coupled scalar fields. Focusing initially on the collective coordinates (minisuperspace) associated with homogeneous, isotropic backgrounds, we are able to perform the quantum gravity path integral exactly. The evolution describes a "perfect bounce", in which the Universe passes smoothly through the singularity. We extend the analysis to spatially flat, anisotropic universes, treated exactly, and to generic inhomogeneous, anisotropic perturbations treated at linear and nonlinear or…
The one-loop renormalized effective potentials for the massive $ϕ^4$ theory on the spatially homogeneous models of Bianchi type I and Kantowski-Sachs type are evaluated. It is used to see how the quantum field affects the cosmological phase transition in the anisotropic spacetimes. For reasons of the mathematical technique it is assumed that the spacetimes are slowly varying or have specially metric forms. We obtain the analytic results and present detailed discussions about the quantum field corrections to the symmetry breaking or symmetry restoration in the model spacetimes.
The primordial spectrum of cosmological tensor perturbations is considered as a possible probe of quantum gravity effects. Together with string theory, loop quantum gravity is one of the most promising frameworks to study quantum effects in the early universe. We show that the associated holonomy correction should modify the potential seen by gravitational waves during the inflationary amplification. The resulting power spectrum should exhibit a characteristic tilt. This opens a new window for cosmological tests of quantum gravity.
We exhibit a mechanism which dynamically adjusts cosmological constant toward $0^+$. The adjustment is quantum-mechanical, discharging cosmological constant in random discrete steps. It renders de Sitter space unstable, and triggers its decay toward Minkowski. Since the instability dynamically stops at $Λ= 0$, the evolution favors the terminal Minkowski space without a need for anthropics. The mechanism works for any QFT coupled to gravity.
It is widely believed that as one of the candidates for dark energy, the cosmological constant should relate directly with the quantum vacuum. Despite decades of theoretical effects, however, there is still no quantitative interpretation of the observed cosmological constant. In this work, we consider the quantum state of the whole universe including the quantum vacuum. Everett's relative-state formulation, vacuum quantum fluctuations and the validity of Einstein's field equation at macroscopic scales imply that our universe wave function might be a superposition of states with different cosmo…
In the investigation and resolution of the cosmological constant problem the inclusion of the dynamics of quantum gravity can be a crucial step. In this work we suggest that the quantum constraints in a canonical theory of gravity can provide a way of addressing the issue: we consider the case of two-dimensional quantum dilaton gravity non-minimally coupled to a U(1) gauge field, in the presence of an arbitrary number of massless scalar matter fields, intended also as an effective description of highly symmetrical higher-dimensional models. We are able to quantize the system non-perturbatively…
Recently, we presented a unified way of analysing classical cosmological perturbation in generalized gravity theories. In this paper, we derive the perturbation spectrums generated from quantum fluctuations again in unified forms. We consider a situation where an accelerated expansion phase of the early universe is realized in a particular generic phase of the generalized gravity. We take the perturbative semiclassical approximation which treats the perturbed parts of the metric and matter fields as quantum mechanical operators. Our generic results include the conventional power-law and expone…
We introduce the notion of background independent quantum field theory. The distinguishing feature of this theory is that the dynamics can be formulated without recourse to a background metric structure. We show in a simple model how the metric properties of spacetime can be recovered from the dynamics. Background independence is not only conceptually desirable but allows for the resolution of a problem haunting ordinary quantum field theory: the cosmological constant problem.
The cosmological constant problem arises at the intersection between general relativity and quantum field theory, and is regarded as a fundamental problem in modern physics. In this paper we describe the historical and conceptual origin of the cosmological constant problem which is intimately connected to the vacuum concept in quantum field theory. We critically discuss how the problem rests on the notion of physical real vacuum energy, and which relations between general relativity and quantum field theory are assumed in order to make the problem well-defined.
We investigate the quantum cosmological tunneling scenario for inflationary models. Within a path-integral approach, we derive the corresponding tunneling probability distribution. A sharp peak in this distribution can be interpreted as the initial condition for inflation and therefore as a quantum cosmological prediction for its energy scale. This energy scale is also a genuine prediction of any inflationary model by itself, as the primordial gravitons generated during inflation leave their imprint in the B-polarization of the cosmic microwave background. In this way, one can derive a consist…
We present an extension of general relativity in which the cosmological constant becomes dynamical and turns out to be conjugate to the Chern-Simons invariant of the Ashtekar connection on a spatial slicing. The latter has been proposed in \cite{Chopin-Lee} as a time variable for quantum gravity: the Chern-Simons time. In the quantum theory the inverse cosmological constant and Chern-Simons time will then become conjugate operators. The "Kodama state" gets a new interpretation as a family of transition functions. These results imply an uncertainty relation between $Λ$ and Chern-Simons time; th…
This article sheds new light on the problem of cosmological reduction in Loop Quantum Gravity. We critically analyze Quantum Reduced Loop Gravity -- an attempt to extract the cosmological sector of the full theory. We reconsider the reduction procedure applied to the states of the kinematical Hilbert space, developing a comparative analysis with previous efforts in the literature. We show that the constraints of the model were formerly instantiated in an inconsistent fashion, leading to an overconstrained dynamics and an ill-defined Hilbert space. We then scrutinize alternative implementations…
The aim of this article is to define a time-dependent cosmological interpretation of quantum mechanics in the context of an infinite open FLRW universe. A time-dependent quantum state is defined for observers in similar observable universes by using the particle horizon. Then, we prove that the wave function collapse of this quantum state is avoided.
Proposing new solution problems of the hierarchy and smallness of the cosmological constant using the Tev scale of the Standard Model in new framework of the higher-order gravity.
There is a widespread belief that the classical small inhomogeneities which gave rise to all structures in the Universe through gravitational instability originated from primordial quantum cosmological fluctuations. However, this transition from quantum to classical fluctuations is plagued with important conceptual issues, most of them related to the application of standard quantum theory to the Universe as a whole. In this paper, we show how these issues can easily be overcome in the framework of the de Broglie-Bohm quantum theory. This theory is an alternative to standard quantum theory that…
We present an improved formulation of 4-dimensional Lorentzian spinfoam quantum gravity with cosmological constant. The construction of spinfoam amplitudes uses the state-integral model of PSL(2,$\mathbb{C}$) Chern-Simons theory and the implementation of simplicity constraint. The formulation has 2 key features: (1) spinfoam amplitudes are all finite, and (2) With suitable boundary data, the semiclassical asymptotics of the vertex amplitude has two oscillatory terms, with phase plus or minus the 4-dimensional Lorentzian Regge action with cosmological constant for the constant curvature 4-simpl…
We explore the cosmological implications of quantum entanglement between two causally disconnected universes in the multiverse. We first consider two causally separated de Sitter spaces with a state which is initially entangled. We derive the reduced density matrix of our universe and compute the spectrum of vacuum fluctuations. We then consider the same system with an initially non-entangled state. We find that scale dependent modulations may enter the spectrum for the case of initially non-entangled state due to quantum interference. This gives rise to the possibility that the existence of c…
The present work shows that a properly chosen ordering of operators can restore unitarity in anisotropic quantum cosmological models. Bianch V and Bianchi IX models with a perfect fluid are worked out. It has been shown that a transformation of coordinates takes the Hamiltonian to that of an inverse square potential which has equal deficiency indices and a self-adjoint extension is thus possible. It is also shown, although not detected clearly before, that isotropic models are also apt to violate the conservation of probability for a careless operator ordering.
