Related papers: A Note on Background (In)dependence
We explicitly construct the states of the 2d free boson on the infinite line with specified asymptotic charges. The Minkowski CFT states derive from (the analytic continuation of) the shrinking limit of Euclidean angular quantization,…
We study the evolution of quantum fluctuations of a scalar field which is coupled to the geometry, in an exponentially expanding universe. We derive an expression for the spectrum of intrinsic perturbations, and it is shown that the…
1) A wave equation is derived from the kinetic equations governing media with rotational as well as translational degrees of freedom. In this wave the fluctuating quantity is a vector, the bulk spin. The transmission is similar to…
We develop an analytic framework to understand fragmentation in turbulent, self-gravitating media. Previously, we showed some properties of turbulence can be predicted with the excursion-set formalism. Here, we generalize to fully…
We investigate properties of two-dimensional asymptotically flat black holes which arise in both string theory and in scale invariant theories of gravity. By introducing matter sources in the field equations we show how such objects can…
We argue that the preferred classical variables that emerge from a pure quantum state are determined by its entanglement structure in the form of redundant records: information shared between many subsystems. Focusing on the early universe,…
Discrete time crystals (DTCs) are a many-body state of matter whose dynamics are slower than the forces acting on it. The same is true for classical systems with period-doubling bifurcations. Hence, the question naturally arises what…
Landscape analyses often assume the existence of large numbers of fields, $N$, with all of the many couplings among these fields (subject to constraints such as local supersymmetry) selected independently and randomly from simple (say…
Point particles fall freely along geodesics; strings do not. In string theory all probes of spacetime structure, including photons, are extended objects and therefore always subject to tidal forces. We illustrate how string theory modifies…
I review several different calculations, coming from string theory, nonperturbative quantum gravity and analyses of black holes that lead to predictions of phenomena that would uniquely be signatures of quantum gravitational effects. These…
The theory of Gaussian quantum fluctuations around classical steady states in nonlinear quantum-optical systems (also known as standard linearization) is a cornerstone for the analysis of such systems. Its simplicity, together with its…
It is shown that background fields of a topological character usually introduced as such in compactified string theories correspond to quantum degrees of freedom which parametrise the freedom in choosing a representation of the zero mode…
In a large variety of quantum mechanical systems, we show that the full non-perturbative expression for energy eigenvalues, containing all orders of perturbative, non-perturbative and quasi-zero-mode terms, may be generated directly from…
One of the key ways in which quantum mechanics differs from relativity is that it requires a fixed background reference frame for spacetime. In fact, this appears to be one of the main conceptual obstacles to uniting the two theories.…
We review certain emergent notions on the nature of spacetime from noncommutative geometry and their radical implications. These ideas of spacetime are suggested from developments in fuzzy physics, string theory, and deformation…
The quantization of circular strings in an anti-de Sitter background spacetime is performed, obtaining a discrete spectrum for the string mass. A comparison with a four-dimensional homogeneous and isotropic spacetime coupled to a conformal…
We show that in generic no-scale models in string theory, the flat, expanding cosmological evolutions found at the quantum level can be attracted to a "quantum no-scale regime", where the no-scale structure is restored asymptotically. In…
Perturbative estimates suggest that extended topological defects such as cosmic strings emit few particles, but numerical simulations of the fields from which they are constructed suggest the opposite. In this paper we study the decay of…
In perturbative string theory, one is generally interested in asymptotic observables, such as the S-matrix in flat spacetime, and boundary correlation functions in anti-de Sitter spacetime. However, there are backgrounds in which such…
We compare the fluctuation relations for work and entropy in underdamped and overdamped systems, when the friction coefficient of the medium is space-dependent. We find that these relations remain unaffected in both cases. However, for the…