Related papers: A Definition of Background Independence
Gauge theory underpins the quantum field theories of the standard model, and in a previous paper was shown via a geometric approach to describe classical electromagnetism in a form which approximates QED. Here we formalize and generalize…
Quantum General Relativity (QGR), sometimes called Loop Quantum Gravity, has matured over the past fifteen years to a mathematically rigorous candidate quantum field theory of the gravitational field. The features that distinguish it from…
This paper develops a process-based account of scientific explanation that reconceives grounding in terms of stabilisation. Grounding theories capture hierarchical dependence but lack criteria for when explanations remain adequate under…
This paper describes and proves a canonical procedure to decouple perturbations and optimize their gauge around backgrounds with one non-homogeneous dimension, namely of co-homogeneity 1, while preserving locality in this dimension.…
Diffeomorphism-induced symmetry transformations and time evolution are distinct operations in generally covariant theories formulated in phase space. Time is not frozen. Diffeomorphism invariants are consequently not necessarily constants…
Gravity can be formulated as a gauge theory by combining symmetry principles and geometrical methods in a consistent mathematical framework. The gauge approach to gravity leads directly to non-Euclidean, post-Riemannian spacetime…
This article contributes to the debate of the meaning of relationalism and background independence, which has remained of interest in theoretical physics from Newton versus Leibniz through to foundational issues for today's leading…
We compare the path integral for transition functions in unimodular gravity and in general relativity. In unimodular gravity the cosmological constant is a property of states that are specified at the boundaries whereas in general…
Classical dynamical laws are conventionally formulated as closed evolution equations defined on fixed geometric backgrounds and a global time parameter. We develop a formulation in which neither prescribed evolution laws nor an external…
In general relativity, the strong equivalence principle is underpinned by a geometrical interpretation of fields on spacetime: all fields and bodies probe the same geometry. This geometric interpretation implies that the parallel transport…
An overview is given of effective gravitational field theories with fixed background fields that break spacetime symmetry. The behavior of the background fields and the types of excitations that can occur depend on whether the symmetry…
Unimodular relativity is a theory of gravity and space-time with a fixed absolute space-time volume element, the modulus, which we suppose is proportional to the number of microscopic modules in that volume element. In general relativity an…
We explore the possibility of a consistent cosmology based on the gauge-fixing independent running of the gravitational and cosmological constants ($G$ and $\Lambda$) in the framework of effective quantum gravity. In particular, their…
We propose a new point of view to gauge theories based on taking the action of symmetry transformations directly on the coordinates of space. Via this approach the gauge fields are not introduced at the first step, and they can be…
We describe here how planetary ephemerides are built in the framework of General Relativity and how they can be used to test alternative theories. We focus on the definition of the reference frame (space and time) in which the planetary…
We introduce the concepts of dependence and independence in a very general framework. We use a concept of rank to study dependence and independence. By means of the rank we identify (total) dependence with inability to create more…
In this paper we discuss the connection on a space of $N=2$ TCFT's that appears in the context of background (in)dependence. We formulate a family of {\it target space field theories} with a similar connection on it. Each theory is a gauge…
Conventional particle theories such as the Standard Model have a number of freely adjustable coupling constants and mass parameters, depending on the symmetry algebra of the local gauge group and the representations chosen for the spinor…
The recent formulation of locally covariant quantum field theory may open the way towards a background independent perturbative formulation of Quantum Gravity.
A thorough study and analysis on the conceptual foundations of unimodular gravity shows that this theory is essentially general relativity disguised as unimodular relativity in the literature. The main reason for this dilemma is accepting…