Related papers: Quantum Cosmology
We compare two different approaches to the treatment of the Wheeler-DeWitt equation and the introduction of time in quantum cosmology. One approach is based on the gauge-fixing procedure in theories with first-class constraints, while the…
Quantum cosmology in general denotes the application of quantum physics to the whole universe and thus gives rise to many realizations and examples, covering problems at different mathematical and conceptual levels. It is related to quantum…
We give an introduction into quantum cosmology with emphasis on its conceptual parts. After a general motivation we review the formalism of canonical quantum gravity on which discussions of quantum cosmology are usually based. We then…
The de~Broglie--Bohm (pilot wave) formulation of quantum theory appears to be free from the conceptual problems specific to quantum mechanics (problem of measurement) and to quantum cosmology (problem of time). We discuss the issue of…
We consider the superposition of two semiclassical solutions of the Wheeler-DeWitt equation for a de Sitter universe, describing a quantized scalar vacuum propagating in a universe that is contracting in one case and expanding in the other,…
In this topical review we discuss the connections between chaos, decoherence and quantum cosmology. We understand chaos as classical chaos in systems with a finite number of degrees of freedom, decoherence as environment induced decoherence…
In quantum cosmology, one has to select a specific wave function solution of the quantum state equations under consideration in order to obtain concrete results. The simplest choices have been already explored, in different frameworks,…
This paper gives an elementary introduction to some of the conceptual problems of quantum cosmology. Contents: 1. Why quantum cosmology? 2. Time in quantum gravity 3.Decoherence and the recovery of the Schrodinger equation 4. The direction…
We investigate a cosmological model with a big-brake singularity in the future: while the first time derivative of the scale factor goes to zero, its second time derivative tends to minus infinity. Although we also discuss the classical…
Lectures by the author at the 1986 Cargese summer school modestly corrected and uploaded for greater accessibility. Some of the author's views on the quantum mechanics of cosmology have changed from those presented here but may still be of…
This paper provides a prospectus for a new way of thinking about the wavefunction of the universe: a $\Psi$-epistemic quantum cosmology. We present a proposal that, if successfully implemented, would resolve the cosmological measurement…
Different proposals for the wave function of the universe are analyzed, with an emphasis on various forms of the tunneling proposal. The issues discussed include the equivalence of the Lorentzian path integral and outgoing-wave proposals,…
We study the classical and quantum models of a scalar field Friedmann-Robertson-Walker (FRW) cosmology with an eye to the issue of time problem in quantum cosmology. We introduce a canonical transformation on the scalar field sector of the…
The application of quantum theory to cosmology raises a number of conceptual questions, such as the role of the quantum-mechanical notion of "observer" or the absence of a time variable in the Wheeler-DeWitt equation. I point out that a…
For a FRW-spacetime coupled to an arbitrary real scalar field, we endow the solution space of the associated Wheeler-DeWitt equation with a Hilbert-space structure, construct the observables, and introduce the physical wave functions of the…
We investigate $(n+1)$--dimensional cosmology with varying speed of light. After solving corresponding Wheeler-DeWitt equation, we obtain exact solutions in both classical and quantum levels for ($c $--$\Lambda$)--dominated Universe. We…
Quantum cosmology is the quantum theory of the entire universe. Although strange at first sight, it is appropriate because (1) our world appears to be fundamentally quantum, (2) the classical description of gravity breaks down at…
Quantum cosmology may permit to determine the initial conditions of the Universe. In particular, it may select a specific model between many possible classical models. In this work, we study a quantum cosmological model based on the string…
We consider two-dimensional quantum gravity endowed with a positive cosmological constant and coupled to a conformal field theory of large and positive central charge. We study cosmological properties at the classical and quantum level. We…
The basic problem of quantum cosmology is the definition of the quantum state of the universe, with appropriate boundary conditions on Riemannian three-geometries. This paper describes recent progress in the corresponding analysis of…