相关论文: Finite, diffeomorphism invariant observables in qu…
We address the construction and interpretation of diffeomorphism-invariant observables in a low-energy effective theory of quantum gravity. The observables we consider are constructed as integrals over the space of coordinates, in analogy…
Gauge-invariant observables for quantum gravity are described, with explicit constructions given primarily to leading order in Newton's constant, analogous to and extending constructions first given by Dirac in quantum electrodynamics.…
We investigate the action of diffeomorphisms in the context of Hamiltonian Gravity. By considering how the diffeomorphism-invariant Hilbert space of Loop Quantum Gravity should be constructed, we formulate a physical principle by demanding,…
Loop quantum gravity is an approach to quantum gravity that starts from the Hamiltonian formulation in terms of a connection and its canonical conjugate. Quantization proceeds in the spirit of Dirac: First one defines an algebra of basic…
This series of lectures gives a simple and self-contained introduction to the non-perturbative and background independent loop approach of canonical quantum gravity. The Hilbert space of kinematical quantum states is constructed and a…
Finding diffeomorphism-invariant observables to characterize the properties of gravity and spacetime at the Planck scale is essential for making progress in quantum gravity. The holonomy and Wilson loop of the Levi-Civita connection are…
Results that illuminate the physical interpretation of states of nonperturbative quantum gravity are obtained using the recently introduced loop variables. It is shown that: i) While local operators such as the metric at a point may not be…
We study a family of physical observable quantities in quantum gravity. We denote them W functions, or n-net functions. They represent transition amplitudes between quantum states of the geometry, are analogous to the n-point functions in…
Local observables in (perturbative) quantum gravity are notoriously hard to define, since the gauge symmetry of gravity -- diffeomorphisms -- moves points on the manifold. In particular, this is a problem for backgrounds of high symmetry…
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…
New results from the new variables/loop representation program of nonperturbative quantum gravity are presented, with a focus on results of Ashtekar, Rovelli and the author which greatly clarify the physical interpretation of the quantum…
Physics in (canonical) quantum gravity needs to be manifestly diffeomorphism-invariant. Consequently, physical observables need to be formulated in terms of manifestly diffeomorphism-invariant operators, which are necessarily composite.…
The canonical quantization of diffeomorphism invariant theories of connections in terms of loop variables is revisited. Such theories include general relativity described in terms of Ashtekar-Barbero variables and extension to Yang-Mills…
If the diffeomorphism symmetry of general relativity is fully implemented into a path integral quantum theory, the path integral leads to a partition function which is an invariant of smooth manifolds. We comment on the physical…
Based on a recent purely geometric construction of observables for the spatial diffeomorphism constraint, we propose two distinct quantum reductions to spherical symmetry within full 3+1-dimensional loop quantum gravity. The construction of…
The problem of observables in classical and quantum gravity is a long-standing one. It is sometimes argued that observable quantities should be diffeomorphsm invariant, following the philosophy of Dirac. We argue that diffeomorphism…
The quantum analogue of general relativistic geometry should be implementable on smooth manifolds without an a priori metric structure, the kinematical covariance group acting by diffeomorphisms. Here I approach quantum gravity (QG) in the…
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…
We study the operator that corresponds to the measurement of volume, in non-perturbative quantum gravity, and we compute its spectrum. The operator is constructed in the loop representation, via a regularization procedure; it is finite,…
Quantum field theory - our basic framework for describing all non-gravitational physics - conflicts with general relativity: the latter precludes the standard definition of the former's essential principle of locality, in terms of commuting…