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BMS Particles in Three Dimensions

High Energy Physics - Theory 2018-01-29 v3 General Relativity and Quantum Cosmology Mathematical Physics Group Theory math.MP Representation Theory

Abstract

This thesis is devoted to the group-theoretic aspects of three-dimensional quantum gravity on Anti-de Sitter and Minkowskian backgrounds. In particular we describe the relation between unitary representations of asymptotic symmetry groups and gravitational perturbations around a space-time metric. In the asymptotically flat case this leads to "BMS particles", representing standard relativistic particles dressed with gravitational degrees of freedom accounted for by coadjoint orbits of the Virasoro group. Their thermodynamics are described by BMS characters, which coincide with gravitational one-loop partition functions. We also extend these considerations to higher-spin theories and supergravity.

Keywords

Cite

@article{arxiv.1610.08526,
  title  = {BMS Particles in Three Dimensions},
  author = {Blagoje Oblak},
  journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:1610.08526},
  year   = {2018}
}

Comments

437 pages (including index), 33 figures. Appendix reproduced from arXiv:1512.03353 [hep-th]. v2: minor typos corrected; published in Springer Theses

R2 v1 2026-06-22T16:33:09.127Z