Related papers: BF Description of Higher-Dimensional Gravity Theor…
We define a four-dimensional spin-foam perturbation theory for the ${\rm BF}$-theory with a $B\wedge B$ potential term defined for a compact semi-simple Lie group $G$ on a compact orientable 4-manifold $M$. This is done by using the formal…
We give a general definition of spin foam models, and then of models of 4d quantum gravity based on constraining BF theory. We highlight the construction and quantization ambiguities entering model building, among which the choice of…
In three dimensions, there exist modifications of Einstein's gravity akin to the topologically massive gravity that describe massive gravitons about maximally symmetric backgrounds. These theories are built on the three-dimensional version…
The Husain-Kuchar theory is a four-dimensional background-independent model that has long been viewed as a useful model for addressing several conceptual and technical problems appearing in the quantization of general relativity mainly in…
Recent criticism of higher-dimensional extensions of Einstein's theory is considered. This may have some justification as regards string theory, but is misguided as applied to five-dimensional theories with a large extra dimension. Such…
We perform, in a manifestly $SO(n-1,1)$ [$SO(n)$] covariant fashion, the Hamiltonian analysis of general relativity in $n$ dimensions written as a constrained $BF$ theory. We solve the constraint on the $B$ field in a way naturally adapted…
A lattice quantum gravity model in 4 dimensional Riemannian spacetime is constructed based on the SU(2) Ashtekar formulation of general relativity. This model can be understood as one of the family of models sometimes called ``spin foam…
We drastically simplify the problem of linearizing a general higher-order theory of gravity. We reduce it to the evaluation of its Lagrangian on a particular Riemann tensor depending on two parameters, and the computation of two derivatives…
Dimensional reduction of generalized gravity theories or string theories generically yields dilaton fields in the lower-dimensional effective theory. Thus at the level of D=4 theories, and cosmology many models contain more than just one…
Spin Foam Models (SFMs) are covariant formulations of Loop Quantum Gravity (LQG) in 4 dimensions. This work studies the perturbations of SFMs on a flat background. It demonstrates for the first time that smooth curved spacetime geometries…
In three spacetime dimensions, general relativity drastically simplifies, becoming a ``topological'' theory with no propagating local degrees of freedom. Nevertheless, many of the difficult conceptual problems of quantizing gravity are…
We study Einstein gravity in a finite spatial region. By requiring a well-defined variational principle, we identify all local boundary conditions, derive surface observables, and compute their algebra. The observables arise as induced…
We propose a formulation of gravity theory in the form of a field theory in a flat space-time with a number of dimensions greater than four. Configurations of the field under consideration describe the splitting of this space-time into a…
The spinfoam approach to quantum gravity rests on a "quantization" of BF theory using 2-complexes and group representations. We explain why, in dimension three and higher, this "spinfoam quantization" must be amended to be made consistent…
In this thesis, we focus on higher-curvature extensions of Einstein gravity as toy models to probe universal properties of conformal field theory (CFT) using the gauge/gravity duality. In this context, we are particularly interested in…
In this article we review the present status of the spin foam formulation of non-perturbative (background independent) quantum gravity. The article is divided in two parts. In the first part we present a general introduction to the main…
We study a generalized action for gravity as a constrained BF theory, and its relationship with the Plebanski action. We analyse the discretization of the constraints and the spin foam quantization of the theory, showing that it leads…
A kind of topological field theory is proposed as a candidate to describe the global structure of the 2-form Einstein gravity with or without a cosmological constant. Indeed in the former case, we show that a quantum state in the candidate…
The canonical ``loop'' formulation of quantum gravity is a mathematically well defined, background independent, non perturbative standard quantization of Einstein's theory of General Relativity. Some among the most meaningful results of the…
We revise the classical continuum formulation behind the Spin Foam approach to the quantization of gravity. Based on the recent applications of the current EPRL-FK model beyond triangulations, we identify the tension with the implementation…