Related papers: Can gravitational microlensing by vacuum fluctuati…
We investigate the ability of ground based gravitational wave observatories to detect gravitational wave lensing events caused by stellar mass lenses. We show that LIGO and Virgo possess the sensitivities required to detect lenses with…
Based on the theory of mutual coherence of light from an extended incoherent quasi-monochromatic source (providing a basis of stellar interferometry) we estimate the degree of light incoherence due to quantum-gravitational fluctuations of…
The observability of primordial cosmic fluctuations does not require a geometric horizon $H^{-1}$, which is exceeded temporarily by the wavelength of fluctuations. The primordial information can be protected against later thermal washout…
There are two types of fluctuations in the quantum vacuum: type 1 vacuum fluctuations are on shell and can interact with matter in specific, limited ways that have observable consequences; type 2 vacuum fluctuations are off shell and cannot…
Quantum gravity is known to be mostly a kind of metaphysical speculation. In this brief essay, we try to argue that, although still extremely difficult to reach, observational signatures can in fact be expected. The early universe is an…
The main argument against the assumption that quantum fluctuations of the electromagnetic field are real is that they do not activate photon detectors. In order to met this objection I study several models of photon counter compatible with…
Despite the fact that quantum gravity theory still remains elusive, it is generally expected that it will bring the picture of a space-time foam at short distances leading to Lorenz Invariance Violation (LIV) manifested e.g. by energy…
We consider implications of the microscopic dynamics of spacetime for the evolution of cosmological models. We argue that quantum geometry effects may lead to stochastic fluctuations of the gravitational constant, which is thus considered…
Clusters of galaxies offer a robust test bed for probing the nature of dark matter that is insensitive to the assumption of the gravity theories. Both Modified Newtonian Dynamics (MOND) and General Relativity (GR) would require similar…
Gravitational Lensing is a UNIQUE tool to constrain the mass distribution of collapsed structures, this is particularly true for galaxies, either on a case by case basis using multiple images of background sources (such as quasars), or…
Galaxies are gigantic physical systems having a typical size of many tens of thousands of light years. Thus any change at the center of the galaxy will affect the rim only tens of millennia later. Those retardation effects seems to be…
A localized charged particle oscillating near a reflecting boundary is considered as a model for non-cancellation of vacuum fluctuations. Although the mean velocity of the particle is sinusoidal, the velocity variance produced by vacuum…
A model of a fluctuating lightcone due to a bath of gravitons is further investigated. The flight times of photons between a source and a detector may be either longer or shorter than the light propagation time in the background classical…
It has recently been suggested that exotic quantum gravity effects could lead to large vacuum fluctuations, potentially observable with realistic detectors. Experiments are currently being built to search for these signals. Here we analyze…
Density inhomogeneities along the line-of-sight distort fluctuations in the cosmic microwave background. Usually, this effect is thought of as a small second-order effect that mildly alters the statistics of the microwave background…
Macroscopic quantum vacuum and modern theories of gravitation share the strong interplay between geometry and physical phenomena. We review selected issues related to the accuracy of the measurement of Casimir forces with particular…
The quantum lightcone fluctuations in flat spacetimes with compactified spatial dimensions or with boundaries are examined. The discussion is based upon a model in which the source of the underlying metric fluctuations is taken to be…
In light of the surge in popularity of electromagnetic cloaking devices, we consider whether it is possible to use gravitational lensing to cloak a volume of spacetime. A metric for such a spacetime geometry is presented, and its geometric…
We study gravitational lensing of the cosmic neutrino background. This signal is undetectable for the foreseeable future, but there is a rich trove of information available. At least some of the neutrinos from the early universe will be…
Gravitational lensing by clusters of galaxies has been detected on scales ranging from $\sim10^{-1}$ Mpc to $\sim10$ Mpc, namely, arcs/arclets, weak lensing and quasar-cluster associations. This allows us to derive an overall radius matter…