Related papers: A Quantized Spacetime Based on $Spin(3,1)$ Symmetr…
Several approaches to the quantum-gravity problem predict that spacetime should be "fuzzy", but have been so far unable to provide a crisp physical characterization of this notion. An intuitive picture of spacetime fuzziness has been…
A connection between non-perturbative formulations of quantum gravity and perturbative string theory is exhibited, based on a formulation of the non-perturbative dynamics due to Markopoulou. In this formulation the dynamics of spin network…
We start with the Hamiltonian formulation of the first order action of pure gravity with a full $\mathfrak{sl}(2,\mathbb C)$ internal gauge symmetry. We make a partial gauge-fixing which reduces $\mathfrak{sl}(2,\mathbb C)$ to its…
The classical theory of gravity predicts its own demise -- singularities. We therefore attempt to quantize gravitation, and present here a new approach to the quantization of gravity wherein the concept of time is derived by imposing the…
Conventional approaches to quantum gravity regard quantum principles, such as nonlocality and superposition, as fundamental properties of nature and therefore argue that gravity must also be quantized. In contrast, this work introduces a…
The null-surface formulation of general relativity -- recently introduced -- provides novel tools for describing the gravitational field, as well as a fresh physical way of viewing it. The new formulation provides ``local'' observables…
Theories of quantum gravity generically presuppose or predict that the reality underlying relativistic spacetimes they are describing is significantly non-spatiotemporal. On pain of empirical incoherence, approaches to quantum gravity must…
These notes are a didactic overview of the non perturbative and background independent approach to a quantum theory of gravity known as loop quantum gravity. The definition of real connection variables for general relativity, used as a…
We construct a canonical formulation of general relativity for the case of a timelike foliation of spacetime. The formulation possesses explicit covariance with respect to Lorentz transformations in the tangent space. Applying the loop…
A gauge-theoretic framework for spacetime and gravitation is proposed, in which a Cartan khronon field breaks the symmetry between space and time, enabling the emergence of temporality within a fundamentally Euclidean setting. Based on a…
The covariance of loop quantum gravity studies of spherically symmetric space-times has recently been questioned. This is a reasonable worry, given that they are formulated in terms of slicing-dependent variables. We show explicitly that…
Inspired by the universality of computation, we advocate for a principle of spacetime complexity, where gravity arises as a consequence of spacetime optimizing the computational cost of its own quantum dynamics. This principle is explicitly…
In this paper we consider the previously proposed generalised space-time and investigate the structure of the field theory upon which it is based. In particular, we derive a SO(D,D) formulation of the bosonic string as a non-linear…
We consider fuzzy spacetime, quanta of area and related concepts in the context of latest approaches to Quantum Gravity and show its interface with usual non-Abelian gauge theory. We also discuss in this context a cosmology which correctly…
In the context of the quest for a holographic formulation of quantum gravity, we investigate the basic boundary theory structure for loop quantum gravity. In 3+1 space-time dimensions, the boundary theory lives on the 2+1-dimensional…
The literature on quantum-gravity-inspired scenarios for the quantization of spacetime has so far focused on particle-physics-like studies. This is partly justified by the present limitations of our understanding of quantum-gravity…
A new approach to quantum gravity is described which joins the loop representation formulation of the canonical theory to the causal set formulation of the path integral. The theory assigns quantum amplitudes to special classes of causal…
I review the present theoretical attempts to understand the quantum properties of spacetime. In particular, I illustrate the main achievements and the main difficulties in: string theory, loop quantum gravity, discrete quantum gravity…
Is there a number for every bit of spacetime, or is spacetime smooth like the real line? The ultimate fate of a quantum theory of gravity might depend on it. The troublesome infinities of quantum gravity can be cured by assuming that…
A 4-dimensional Lorentzian static space-time is equivalent to 3-dimensional Euclidean gravity coupled to a massless Klein-field. By canonically quantizing the coupling model in the framework of loop quantum gravity, we obtain a quantum…