1,439 research outputs found
A perturbative approach to Dirac observables and their space-time algebra
We introduce a general approximation scheme in order to calculate gauge
invariant observables in the canonical formulation of general relativity. Using
this scheme we will show how the observables and the dynamics of field theories
on a fixed background or equivalently the observables of the linearized theory
can be understood as an approximation to the observables in full general
relativity. Gauge invariant corrections can be calculated up to an arbitrary
high order and we will explicitly calculate the first non--trivial correction.
Furthermore we will make a first investigation into the Poisson algebra between
observables corresponding to fields at different space--time points and
consider the locality properties of the observables.Comment: 23 page
Manifestly Gauge-Invariant General Relativistic Perturbation Theory: II. FRW Background and First Order
In our companion paper we identified a complete set of manifestly
gauge-invariant observables for general relativity. This was possible by
coupling the system of gravity and matter to pressureless dust which plays the
role of a dynamically coupled observer. The evolution of those observables is
governed by a physical Hamiltonian and we derived the corresponding equations
of motion. Linear perturbation theory of those equations of motion around a
general exact solution in terms of manifestly gauge invariant perturbations was
then developed. In this paper we specialise our previous results to an FRW
background which is also a solution of our modified equations of motion. We
then compare the resulting equations with those derived in standard
cosmological perturbation theory (SCPT). We exhibit the precise relation
between our manifestly gauge-invariant perturbations and the linearly
gauge-invariant variables in SCPT. We find that our equations of motion can be
cast into SCPT form plus corrections. These corrections are the trace that the
dust leaves on the system in terms of a conserved energy momentum current
density. It turns out that these corrections decay, in fact, in the late
universe they are negligible whatever the value of the conserved current. We
conclude that the addition of dust which serves as a test observer medium,
while implying modifications of Einstein's equations without dust, leads to
acceptable agreement with known results, while having the advantage that one
now talks about manifestly gauge-invariant, that is measurable, quantities,
which can be used even in perturbation theory at higher orders.Comment: 51 pages, no figure
Algebraic Quantum Gravity (AQG) III. Semiclassical Perturbation Theory
In the two previous papers of this series we defined a new combinatorical
approach to quantum gravity, Algebraic Quantum Gravity (AQG). We showed that
AQG reproduces the correct infinitesimal dynamics in the semiclassical limit,
provided one incorrectly substitutes the non -- Abelean group SU(2) by the
Abelean group in the calculations. The mere reason why that
substitution was performed at all is that in the non -- Abelean case the volume
operator, pivotal for the definition of the dynamics, is not diagonisable by
analytical methods. This, in contrast to the Abelean case, so far prohibited
semiclassical computations. In this paper we show why this unjustified
substitution nevertheless reproduces the correct physical result: Namely, we
introduce for the first time semiclassical perturbation theory within AQG (and
LQG) which allows to compute expectation values of interesting operators such
as the master constraint as a power series in with error control. That
is, in particular matrix elements of fractional powers of the volume operator
can be computed with extremely high precision for sufficiently large power of
in the expansion. With this new tool, the non -- Abelean
calculation, although technically more involved, is then exactly analogous to
the Abelean calculation, thus justifying the Abelean analysis in retrospect.
The results of this paper turn AQG into a calculational discipline
A Path-integral for the Master Constraint of Loop Quantum Gravity
In the present paper, we start from the canonical theory of loop quantum
gravity and the master constraint programme. The physical inner product is
expressed by using the group averaging technique for a single self-adjoint
master constraint operator. By the standard technique of skeletonization and
the coherent state path-integral, we derive a path-integral formula from the
group averaging for the master constraint operator. Our derivation in the
present paper suggests there exists a direct link connecting the canonical Loop
quantum gravity with a path-integral quantization or a spin-foam model of
General Relativity.Comment: 19 page
Quantum Spin Dynamics VIII. The Master Constraint
Recently the Master Constraint Programme (MCP) for Loop Quantum Gravity (LQG)
was launched which replaces the infinite number of Hamiltonian constraints by a
single Master constraint. The MCP is designed to overcome the complications
associated with the non -- Lie -- algebra structure of the Dirac algebra of
Hamiltonian constraints and was successfully tested in various field theory
models. For the case of 3+1 gravity itself, so far only a positive quadratic
form for the Master Constraint Operator was derived. In this paper we close
this gap and prove that the quadratic form is closable and thus stems from a
unique self -- adjoint Master Constraint Operator. The proof rests on a simple
feature of the general pattern according to which Hamiltonian constraints in
LQG are constructed and thus extends to arbitrary matter coupling and holds for
any metric signature. With this result the existence of a physical Hilbert
space for LQG is established by standard spectral analysis.Comment: 19p, no figure
From the discrete to the continuous - towards a cylindrically consistent dynamics
Discrete models usually represent approximations to continuum physics.
Cylindrical consistency provides a framework in which discretizations mirror
exactly the continuum limit. Being a standard tool for the kinematics of loop
quantum gravity we propose a coarse graining procedure that aims at
constructing a cylindrically consistent dynamics in the form of transition
amplitudes and Hamilton's principal functions. The coarse graining procedure,
which is motivated by tensor network renormalization methods, provides a
systematic approximation scheme towards this end. A crucial role in this coarse
graining scheme is played by embedding maps that allow the interpretation of
discrete boundary data as continuum configurations. These embedding maps should
be selected according to the dynamics of the system, as a choice of embedding
maps will determine a truncation of the renormalization flow.Comment: 22 page
Gauge invariant perturbations around symmetry reduced sectors of general relativity: applications to cosmology
We develop a gauge invariant canonical perturbation scheme for perturbations
around symmetry reduced sectors in generally covariant theories, such as
general relativity. The central objects of investigation are gauge invariant
observables which encode the dynamics of the system. We apply this scheme to
perturbations around a homogeneous and isotropic sector (cosmology) of general
relativity. The background variables of this homogeneous and isotropic sector
are treated fully dynamically which allows us to approximate the observables to
arbitrary high order in a self--consistent and fully gauge invariant manner.
Methods to compute these observables are given. The question of backreaction
effects of inhomogeneities onto a homogeneous and isotropic background can be
addressed in this framework. We illustrate the latter by considering
homogeneous but anisotropic Bianchi--I cosmologies as perturbations around a
homogeneous and isotropic sector.Comment: 39 pages, 1 figur
Emergent diffeomorphism invariance in a discrete loop quantum gravity model
Several approaches to the dynamics of loop quantum gravity involve
discretizing the equations of motion. The resulting discrete theories are known
to be problematic since the first class algebra of constraints of the continuum
theory becomes second class upon discretization. If one treats the second class
constraints properly, the resulting theories have very different dynamics and
number of degrees of freedom than those of the continuum theory. It is
therefore questionable how these theories could be considered a starting point
for quantization and the definition of a continuum theory through a continuum
limit. We show explicitly in a model that the {\em uniform discretizations}
approach to the quantization of constrained systems overcomes these
difficulties. We consider here a simple diffeomorphism invariant one
dimensional model and complete the quantization using {\em uniform
discretizations}. The model can be viewed as a spherically symmetric reduction
of the well known Husain--Kucha\v{r} model of diffeomorphism invariant theory.
We show that the correct quantum continuum limit can be satisfactorily
constructed for this model. This opens the possibility of treating 1+1
dimensional dynamical situations of great interest in quantum gravity taking
into account the full dynamics of the theory and preserving the space-time
covariance at a quantum level.Comment: 12 pages, Revte
Loop quantization of spherically symmetric midi-superspaces
We quantize the exterior of spherically symmetric vacuum space-times using a
midi-superspace reduction within the Ashtekar new variables. Through a partial
gauge fixing we eliminate the diffeomorphism constraint and are left with a
Hamiltonian constraint that is first class. We complete the quantization in the
loop representation. We also use the model to discuss the issues that will
arise in more general contexts in the ``uniform discretization'' approach to
the dynamics.Comment: 18 pages, RevTex, no figures, some typos corrected, published
version, for some reason a series of figures were incorrectly added to the
previous versio
Regge calculus from a new angle
In Regge calculus space time is usually approximated by a triangulation with
flat simplices. We present a formulation using simplices with constant
sectional curvature adjusted to the presence of a cosmological constant. As we
will show such a formulation allows to replace the length variables by 3d or 4d
dihedral angles as basic variables. Moreover we will introduce a first order
formulation, which in contrast to using flat simplices, does not require any
constraints. These considerations could be useful for the construction of
quantum gravity models with a cosmological constant.Comment: 8 page
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