Related papers: Exotic Smoothness and Quantum Gravity
If the diffeomorphism symmetry of general relativity is fully implemented into a path integral quantum theory, the path integral leads to a partition function which is an invariant of smooth manifolds. We comment on the physical…
We study exotic smoothings of open 4-manifolds using the minimal genus function and its analog for end homology. While traditional techniques in open 4-manifold smoothing theory give no control of minimal genera, we make progress by using…
We show that the quantum geometry of the Fermi surface can be numerically described by a 3-dimensional discrete quantum manifold. This approach not only avoids singularities in the Fermi sea, but it also enables the precise computation of…
Fintushel and Stern have proved that if S \subset X is a symplectic surface in a symplectic 4-manifold such that S has simply-connected complement and nonnegative self-intersection, then there are infinitely many topologically equivalent…
Vacuum spherically symmetric loop quantum gravity in the midi-superspace approximation using inhomogeneous horizon-penetrating slices has been studied for a decade, and it has been noted that the singularity is eliminated. It is replaced by…
Let $K\subseteq S^3$ be a knot with exterior $E_K$, and denote by $\rho\colon \pi_1(E_K)\twoheadrightarrow G$ a quotient of its group. We give a sharp obstruction to the existence of a connected, oriented, smooth surface $F\subseteq B^4$…
The ultimate extension of Penrose's Spin Geometry Theorem is given. It is shown how the \emph{local} geometry of any \emph{curved} Lorentzian 4-manifold (with $C^2$ metric) can be derived in the classical limit using only the observables in…
Loop quantum gravity has provided us with a canonical framework especially devised for background independent and diffeomorphism invariant gauge field theories. In this quantization the fundamental excitations are called spin network…
Computational complexity is a new quantum information concept that may play an important role in holography and in understanding the physics of the black hole interior. We consider quantum computational complexity for $n$ qubits using…
This paper investigates the exotic phenomena exhibited by links of disconnected surfaces with boundary that are properly embedded in the 4-ball. Our main results provide two different constructions of exotic pairs of surface links that are…
Given a singular variety I discuss the relations between quantum cohomology of its resolution and smoothing. In particular, I explain how toric degenerations helps with computing Gromov--Witten invariants, and the role of this story in…
We study the properties of the Newtonian gravitational potential in a spherical Universe for different topologies. For this, we use the non-Euclidean Newtonian theory developed in Vigneron [2022, Class. & Quantum Gravity, 39, 155006]…
We give a brief non-technical introduction to non-regular spacetime geometry. In particular, we discuss how curvature, and hence gravity, can be defined without a smooth (differential geometric) calculus.
This thesis discusses exotic 7-spheres, i.e. manifolds that are homeomorphic but not diffeomorphic to the ordinary 7-sphere, using a set of analytical and computational tools from theoretical physics. The theory of fibre bundles and…
In this work, we extend the so-called typicality approach, originally formulated in statistical mechanics contexts, to $SU(2)$-invariant spin-network states. Our results do not depend on the physical interpretation of the spin network;…
In the absence of a complete theory of quantum gravity, phenomenological models built upon minimal assumptions have been explored for the analysis of possible quantum effects in gravitational systems. Implications of a superposition of…
A "quantum-first" approach to gravity is described, where rather than quantizing general relativity, one seeks to formulate the physics of gravity within a quantum-mechanical framework with suitably general postulates. Important guides are…
In six dimensions, there is an exotic $\mathcal{N}=(4,0)$ supermultiplet that contains only fields of spin $\leq 2$, but no graviton, and that on a circle reduces to 5D $\mathcal{N}=4$ supergravity. It has been proposed that, if suitable…
An exotic linearised theory of superconformal gravity in D = 6, (4,0) superspace, proposed by C. Hull, is discussed in loop space with focus on its bosonic sector. Pursuing an analogy to the loop space version of the system of a two form B…
An intriguing solution that appears in General Relativity (GR) but has not been observed so far is the wormhole. This exotic solution describes a topological bridge connecting two distinct universes or two different points in the same…