Related papers: Endeavours in Discrete Lorentzian Geometry; A thes…
The causal set approach to quantum gravity embodies the concepts of causality and discreteness. This article explores some foundational and conceptual issues within causal set theory.
We study the Euclidean path integral of two-dimensional quantum gravity with positive cosmological constant coupled to conformal matter with large and positive central charge. The problem is considered in a semiclassical expansion about a…
A discrete model of Lorentzian quantum gravity is proposed. The theory is completely background free, containing no reference to absolute space, time, or simultaneity. The states at one slice of time are networks in which each vertex is…
Starting from an action for discretized gravity we derive a canonical formalism that exactly reproduces the dynamics and (broken) symmetries of the covariant formalism. For linearized Regge calculus on a flat background -- which exhibits…
In a nonlinear theory, such as gravity, physically relevant solutions are usually hard to find. Therefore, starting from a background exact solution with symmetries, one uses the perturbation theory, which albeit approximately, provides a…
Causal Dynamical Triangulations (CDT) are a concrete attempt to define a nonperturbative path integral for quantum gravity. We present strong evidence that the lattice theory has a second-order phase transition line, which can potentially…
Causal set theory is an intrinsically nonlocal approach to quantum gravity, inheriting its nonlocality from Lorentzian nonlocality. This nonlocality causes problems in defining differential operators -- such as the d'Alembert operator, a…
The dimension of the Hilbert space of a quantum gravitational system can be written formally as a path integral partition function over Lorentzian metrics. We implement this in a 2+1 dimensional simplicial minisuperspace model in which the…
We study 2d and 3d gravity theories on spacetimes with causal (timelike or null) codimension one boundaries while allowing for variations in the position of the boundary. We construct the corresponding solution phase space and specify…
In this paper we tackle the issue of causality in quantum gravity, in the context of 3d spin foam models. We identify the correct procedure for implementing the causality/orientation dependence restriction that reduces the path integral for…
The role of topology change in a fundamental theory of quantum gravity is still a matter of debate. However, when regarding string theory as two-dimensional quantum gravity, topological fluctuations are essential. Here we present a third…
We introduce and investigate numerically a minimal class of dynamical triangulations of two-dimensional gravity on the sphere in which only vertices of order five, six or seven are permitted. We show firstly that this restriction of the…
We construct a family of closeness functions on the space of finite volume Lorentzian geometries using the abundance of discrete intervals in the underlying random causal sets. Although strictly weaker than a Lorentzian Gromov-Hausdorff…
We use dimensional regularization to evaluate quantum mechanical path integrals in arbitrary curved spaces on an infinite time interval. We perform 3-loop calculations in Riemann normal coordinates, and 2-loop calculations in general…
We discuss contact invariant structures on the space of solutions of a third-order ordinary differential equation. Associated to any third-order differential equation modulo contact transformations, Chern introduced a degenerate conformal…
Causal set theory is a discrete model of spacetime that retains a notion of causal structure. We understand how to construct causal sets that approximate a given spacetime, but most causal sets are not at all manifold-like, and must be…
In this review we discuss the interplay between discretization, constraint implementation, and diffeomorphism symmetry in Loop Quantum Gravity and Spin Foam models. To this end we review the Consistent Discretizations approach, which is an…
We suggest a generalization of the dynamical triangulation approach to quantum gravity with both timelike and spacelike edges, which can serve as a toy model for quantum gravity in the Lorentz sector in two dimensions. It is possible to…
Four-dimensional CDT (causal dynamical triangulations) is a lattice theory of geometries which one might use in an attempt to define quantum gravity non-perturbatively, following the standard procedures of lattice field theory. Being a…
We investigate the interaction between matter and causal dynamical triangulations (CDT) in the context of two-dimensional quantum gravity. We focus on the Ising model coupled to CDT, contrasting this with Liouville gravity and the relation…