Related papers: No smooth beginning for spacetime
We point out that results obtained by M. Ribaric and L. Sustersic, hep-th/0403084, and by M. Blasone, P. Jizba and H. Kleinert, quant-ph/0409021, suggest that the path-integral formalism is the key to a derivation of quantum physics from…
In seeking to arrive at a theory of ``quantum gravity'', one faces several choices among alternative approaches. I list some of these ``forks in the road'' and offer reasons for taking one alternative over the other. In particular, I…
A classical dynamical system in a four-dimensional Euclidean space with universal time is considered. The space is hypothesized to be originally occupied by a uniform substance, pictured as a liquid, which at some time became supercooled.…
We contrast the initial condition requirements of various contemporary cosmological models, including inflationary and bouncing cosmologies. Various proposals such as Hartle-Hawking's no boundary, or Tunnelling boundary conditions are…
Quantum gravity has been so elusive because we have tried to approach it by two paths which can never meet: quantum mechanics and general relativity. These contradict each other not only in superdense regimes, but also in the vacuum. We…
The dominant topologies in the Euclidean path integral for quantum gravity differ sharply according on the sign of the cosmological constant. For $\Lambda>0$, saddle points can occur only for topologies with vanishing first Betti number and…
We show how the quantization of two-dimensional gravity leads to an (Euclidean) quantum space-time where the average geometry is that of constant negative curvature and where the Hartle-Hawking boundary condition arises naturally.
New and non-trivial properties of off-shell instantons in loop quantum cosmology show that dynamical signature change naturally cures recently observed problems in the semiclassical path integral of quantum gravity. If left unsolved, these…
We propose a theory of quantum gravity which formulates the quantum theory as a nonperturbative path integral, where each spacetime history appears with a weight given by the exponentiated Einstein-Hilbert action of the corresponding causal…
We demonstrate that the positive frequency modes for a complex scalar field in a constant electric field (Schwinger modes), in three different gauges, can be represented as exact Lorentzian worldline path integral amplitudes. Although the…
We formulate a non-perturbative lattice model of two-dimensional Lorentzian quantum gravity by performing the path integral over geometries with a causal structure. The model can be solved exactly at the discretized level. Its continuum…
The path-integral approach to cosmology consists in the computation of transition amplitudes between states of the quantum geometry of the universe. In the past, the concrete computation of these transitions amplitudes has been performed in…
We formally prove the existence of a quantization procedure that makes the path integral of a general diffeomorphism-invariant theory of gravity, with fixed total spacetime volume, equivalent to that of its unimodular version. This is…
We start by presenting the general set of structure equations for the 1+3 threading spacetime decomposition in 4 spacetime dimensions, valid for any theory of gravitation based on a metric compatible affine connection. We then apply these…
Just as for non-abelian gauge theories at strong coupling, discrete lattice methods are a natural tool in the study of non-perturbative quantum gravity. They have to reflect the fact that the geometric degrees of freedom are dynamical, and…
Any acceptable quantum gravity theory must allow us to recover the classical spacetime in the appropriate limit. Moreover, the spacetime geometrical notions should be intrinsically tied to the behavior of the matter that probes them. We…
We consider the quantum creation of a closed universe within the Euclidean path-integral formalism. An analytical expression for the tunneling probability is derived, including both the exponential suppression and the exact Gaussian…
In this contribution a path integral approach for the quantum motion on three-dimensional spaces according to Koenigs, for short``Koenigs-Spaces'', is discussed. Their construction is simple: One takes a Hamiltonian from three-dimensional…
We develop a new semiclassical approach, which starts with the density matrix given by the Euclidean time path integral with fixed coinciding endpoints, and proceed by identifying classical (minimal Euclidean action) path, to be referred to…
Combinatorial quantum gravity is governed by a discrete Einstein-Hilbert action formulated on an ensemble of random graphs. There is strong evidence for a second-order quantum phase transition separating a random phase at strong coupling…