Related papers: Quantum Diffeomorphisms and Conformal Symmetry
A conventional wisdom often perpetuated in the literature states that: (i) a 3+1 decomposition of space-time into space and time is synonymous with the canonical treatment and this decomposition is essential for any Hamiltonian formulation…
We analize the relational quantum evolution of generally covariant systems in terms of Rovelli's evolving constants of motion and the generalized Heisenberg picture. In order to have a well defined evolution, and a consistent quantum…
The relativistic conception of space and time is challenged by the quantum nature of physical observables. It has been known for a long time that Poincar\'e symmetry of field theory can be extended to the larger conformal symmetry. We use…
This thesis contains an analysis of the problem of time in quantum cosmology and its application to a cosmological minisuperspace model. In the first part, we introduce the problem of time and the theoretical foundations. In the second…
Without a complete theory of quantum gravity, the question of how quantum fields and quantum particles behave in a superposition of spacetimes seems beyond the reach of theoretical and experimental investigations. Here we use an extension…
A global symmetry of a quantum field theory is said to have an 't Hooft anomaly if it cannot be promoted to a local symmetry of a gauged theory. In this paper, we show that the anomaly is also an obstruction to defining symmetric boundary…
We show how to lift a generic non-scale invariant action in Einstein frame into a locally conformally-invariant (or Weyl-invariant) theory and present a new general form for Lagrangians consistent with Weyl symmetry. Advantages of such a…
The four-dimensional gauge group of general relativity corresponds to arbitrary coordinate transformations on a four-manifold. Theories of gravity with a dynamical structure remarkably like Einstein's theory can be obtained on the basis of…
This paper summarizes and generalizes a recently proposed mathematical framework that unifies the standard formalisms of special relativity and quantum mechanics. The framework is based on Hilbert spaces H of functions of four space-time…
Equations for cosmological evolution are formulated in a Weyl invariant formalism to take into account possible Weyl anomalies. Near two dimensions, the renormalized cosmological term leads to a nonlocal energy-momentum tensor and a slowly…
We quantize a homogeneous and isotropic universe for two models of modified teleparallel gravity, wherein an arbitrary function of the boundary term, namely $B$, is present in the action and in the other model a scalar field that is…
Deformations of spacelike hypersurfaces in space-time play an important role in discussions of general covariance and slicing independence in gravitational theories. In a canonical formulation, they provide the geometrical meaning of gauge…
Recently, using a local action satisfying the Wess-Zumino condition as a kinetic term of the conformal mode, we formulated a four-dimensional quantum geometry (4DQG). The conformal mode can be treated exactly, and it was shown that the part…
This paper discusses the problem of inflation in the context of Friedmann-Robertson-Walker Cosmology. We show how, after a simple change of variables, to quantize the problem in a way which parallels the classical discussion. The result is…
A covariant Hamiltonian formulation generalizing De Donder-Weyl mechanics is constructed with field strengths as velocity fields. Since the teleparallel equivalents to general relativity are quadratic in field strengths, the field-strength…
An important unanswered question in quantum field theory is to understand precisely under which conditions scale invariance implies invariance under the full conformal group. While the general answer in two dimensions has been known for…
The concept of a particle is ambiguous in quantum field theory. It is generally agreed that particles depend not only on spacetime, but also on coordinates used to parametrise spacetime points. One of us has in contrast proposed a…
General relativity in three spacetime dimensions is used to explore three approaches to the ``problem of time'' in quantum gravity: the internal Schr\"odinger approach with mean extrinsic curvature as a time variable, the Wheeler-DeWitt…
The ADM approach to canonical general relativity combined with Dirac's method of quantizing constrained systems leads to the Wheeler-DeWitt equation. A number of mathematical as well as physical difficulties that arise in connection with…
The relation between symmetry reduction before and after quantization of a field theory is discussed using a toy model: the axisymmetric Klein-Gordon field. We consider three possible notions of symmetry at the quantum level: invariance…