Search results for "Semiclassical gravity"
showing 10 items of 10 documents
Apparent universality of semiclassical gravity in the far field limit
2006
The universality of semiclassical gravity is investigated by considering the behavior of the quantities < ��^2 > and < {T^a}_b >, along with quantum corrections to the effective Newtonian potential in the far field limits of static spherically symmetric objects ranging from stars in the weak field Newtonian limit to black holes. For scalar fields it is shown that when differences occur they all result from the behavior of a single mode with zero frequency and angular momentum and are thus due to a combination of infrared and s-wave effects. An intriguing combination of similarities and differences between the extreme cases of a Schwarzschild black hole and a star in the weak fie…
Renormalization group flow of quantum gravity in the Einstein-Hilbert truncation
2002
The exact renormalization group equation for pure quantum gravity is used to derive the non-perturbative $\Fbeta$-functions for the dimensionless Newton constant and cosmological constant on the theory space spanned by the Einstein-Hilbert truncation. The resulting coupled differential equations are evaluated for a sharp cutoff function. The features of these flow equations are compared to those found when using a smooth cutoff. The system of equations with sharp cutoff is then solved numerically, deriving the complete renormalization group flow of the Einstein-Hilbert truncation in $d=4$. The resulting renormalization group trajectories are classified and their physical relevance is discus…
Pair production due to an electric field in 1+1 dimensions and the validity of the semiclassical approximation
2021
Solutions to the backreaction equation in $1+1$-dimensional semiclassical electrodynamics are obtained and analyzed when considering a time-varying homogeneous electric field initially generated by a classical electric current, coupled to either a quantized scalar field or a quantized spin-$\frac{1}{2}$ field. Particle production by way of the Schwinger effect leads to backreaction effects that modulate the electric field strength. Details of the particle production process are investigated along with the transfer of energy between the electric field and the particles. The validity of the semiclassical approximation is also investigated using a criterion previously implemented for chaotic i…
Is There a C-Function in 4D Quantum Einstein Gravity?
2016
We describe a functional renormalization group-based method to search for ‘C-like’ functions with properties similar to that in 2D conformal field theory. It exploits the mode counting properties of the effective average action and is particularly suited for theories including quantized gravity. The viability of the approach is demonstrated explicitly in a truncation of 4 dimensional Quantum Einstein Gravity, i.e. asymptotically safe metric gravity.
The Quantum Scalar Field in Spherically Symmetric Loop Quantum Gravity
2013
We consider the quantization of a spherically symmetric gravitational system coupled to a massless scalar field within the loop quantum gravity framework. Our results rely on the uniform discretizations method developed during the last years. We minimize the associated discrete “master constraint” using a trial state whose gravitational part is peaked around the classical Schwarzschild solution.
Quantum Gravity Effects in the Kerr Spacetime
2010
We analyze the impact of the leading quantum gravity effects on the properties of black holes with nonzero angular momentum by performing a suitable renormalization group improvement of the classical Kerr metric within Quantum Einstein Gravity (QEG). In particular we explore the structure of the horizons, the ergosphere, and the static limit surfaces as well as the phase space avilable for the Penrose process. The positivity properties of the effective vacuum energy momentum tensor are also discussed and the "dressing" of the black hole's mass and angular momentum are investigated by computing the corresponding Komar integrals. The pertinent Smarr formula turns out to retain its classical f…
RG flows of Quantum Einstein Gravity in the linear-geometric approximation
2014
We construct a novel Wetterich-type functional renormalization group equation for gravity which encodes the gravitational degrees of freedom in terms of gauge-invariant fluctuation fields. Applying a linear-geometric approximation the structure of the new flow equation is considerably simpler than the standard Quantum Einstein Gravity construction since only transverse-traceless and trace part of the metric fluctuations propagate in loops. The geometric flow reproduces the phase-diagram of the Einstein-Hilbert truncation including the non-Gaussian fixed point essential for Asymptotic Safety. Extending the analysis to the polynomial $f(R)$-approximation establishes that this fixed point come…
A field theoretic realization of a universal bundle for gravity
1992
Abstract Based upon a local vector supersymmetry algebra, we discuss the general structure of the quantum action for topological gravity theories in arbitrary dimensions. The precise form of the action depends on the particular dimension, and also on the moduli space of interest. We describe the general features by examining a theory of topological gravity in two dimensions, with a moduli space specified by vanishing curvature two-form. It is shown that these topological gravity models together with their observables provide a field theoretic realization of a universal bundle for gravity.
Focus on quantum Einstein gravity
2012
The gravitational asymptotic safety program summarizes the attempts to construct a consistent and predictive quantum theory of gravity within Wilson's generalized framework of renormalization. Its key ingredient is a non-Gaussian fixed point of the renormalization group flow which controls the behavior of the theory at trans-Planckian energies and renders gravity safe from unphysical divergences. Provided that the fixed point comes with a finite number of ultraviolet-attractive (relevant) directions, this construction gives rise to a consistent quantum field theory which is as predictive as an ordinary, perturbatively renormalizable one. This opens up the exciting possibility of establishin…