Related papers: Vassiliev invariants: a new framework for quantum …
We show that the algebra of discretized spatial diffeomorphism constraints in Hamiltonian lattice quantum gravity closes without anomalies in the limit of small lattice spacing. The result holds for arbitrary factor-ordering and for a…
We discuss the theory of knots, and describe how knot invariants arise naturally in gravitational physics. The focus of this review is to delineate the relationship between knot theory and the loop representation of non-perturbative…
It is well known that in a generally covariant gravitational theory the choice of spacetime scalars as coordinates yields phase-space observables (or "invariants"). However their relation to the symmetry group of diffeomorphism…
In the framework of loop quantum gravity, we define a new Hilbert space of states which are solutions of a large number of components of the diffeomorphism constraint. On this Hilbert space, using the methods of Thiemann, we obtain a family…
This book is a detailed introduction to the theory of finite type (Vassiliev) knot invariants, with a stress on its combinatorial aspects. It is intended to serve both as a textbook for readers with no or little background in this area, and…
It has been folklore for several years in the knot theory community that certain integrals on configuration space, originally motivated by perturbation theory for the Chern-Simons field theory, converge and yield knot invariants. This was…
We review quantum field theory approach to the knot theory. Using holomorphic gauge we obtain the Kontsevich integral. It is explained how to calculate Vassiliev invariants and coefficients in Kontsevich integral in a combinatorial way…
The key ingredient for lattice regularized quantum gravity is diffeomorphism symmetry. We formulate a lattice functional integral for quantum gravity in terms of fermions. This allows for a diffeomorphism invariant functional measure and…
We prove a refinement of Vogel's statement that the Vassiliev invariants of knots coming from semisimple Lie algebras do not generate all Vassiliev invariants. This refinement takes into account the second grading on Vassiliev invariants…
We introduce an invariant of tangles in Khovanov homology by considering a natural inverse system of Khovanov homology groups. As application, we derive an invariant of strongly invertible knots; this invariant takes the form of a graded…
Kashaev and Reshetikhin previously described a way to define holonomy invariants of knots using quantum $\mathfrak{sl}_2$ at a root of unity. These are generalized quantum invariants depend both on a knot $K$ and a representation of the…
It is generally believed that a full-fledged theory of quantum gravity should exhibit background independence and diffeomorphism invariance. In its most general form, the latter comprises field redefinitions, which are diffeomorphisms in…
We construct knot invariants categorifying the quantum knot variants for all representations of quantum groups. We show that these invariants coincide with previous invariants defined by Khovanov for sl_2 and sl_3 and by Mazorchuk-Stroppel…
Kashaev's invariants for a knot in a three sphere are generalized to invariants of a knot in a three manifold. A relation between the newly constructed invariants and the hyperbolic volume of the knot complement is observed for some knots…
We apply the ideas of Alvarez and Labastida to the invariant of spin networks defined by Witten and Martin based on Chern-Simons theory. We show that it is possible to define ambient invariants of spin networks that (for the case of SU(2))…
A quantum hamiltonian which evolves the gravitational field according to time as measured by constant surfaces of a scalar field is defined through a regularization procedure based on the loop representation, and is shown to be finite and…
Given a symmetry group acting on a principal fibre bundle, symmetric states of the quantum theory of a diffeomorphism invariant theory of connections on this fibre bundle are defined. These symmetric states, equipped with a scalar product…
We introduce an algebraic structure we call semiquandles whose axioms are derived from flat Reidemeister moves. Finite semiquandles have associated counting invariants and enhanced invariants defined for flat virtual knots and links. We…
Bell-network states constitute a class of diffeomorphism-invariant and entangled states of the geometry within loop quantum gravity (LQG) that satisfy an area-law for the entanglement entropy in the limit of large spins. The fluctuations of…
In loop quantum gravity (LQG), states of the gravitational field are represented by labeled graphs called spin networks. Their dynamics can be described by a Hamiltonian constraint, { which acts on the spin network states modifying both…