Primordial Entropy Production and Lambda-driven Inflation from Quantum Einstein Gravity

We review recent work on renormalization group (RG) improved cosmologies based upon a RG trajectory of Quantum Einstein Gravity (QEG) with realistic parameter values. In particular we argue that QEG effects can account for the entire entropy of the present Universe in the massless sector and give rise to a phase of inflationary expansion. This phase is a pure quantum effect and requires no classical inflaton field.Comment: 12 pages, 4 figures, IGCG-07 Pun

Variational Study of Weakly Coupled Triply Heavy Baryons

Baryons made of three heavy quarks become weakly coupled, when all the quarks are sufficiently heavy such that the typical momentum transfer is much larger than Lambda_QCD. We use variational method to estimate masses of the lowest-lying bcc, ccc, bbb and bbc states by assuming they are Coulomb bound states. Our predictions for these states are systematically lower than those made long ago by Bjorken.Comment: 31 pages, 5 figure

Gravitating defects of codimension-two

Thin gravitating defects with conical singularities in higher codimensions and with generalized Israel matching conditions are known to be inconsistent for generic energy-momentum. A way to remove this inconsistency is proposed and is realized for an axially symmetric gravitating codimension-two defect in six dimensional Einstein gravity. By varying with respect to the brane embedding fields, alternative matching conditions are derived, which are generalizations of the Nambu-Goto equations of motion of the defect, consistent with bulk gravity. For a maximally symmetric defect the standard picture is recovered. The four-dimensional perfect fluid cosmology coincides with conventional FRW in the case of radiation, but for dust it has rho^{4/3} instead of rho. A four-dimensional black hole solution is presented having the Schwarzschild form with a short-distance correction r^{-2}.Comment: Minor changes, to appear in Classical and Quantum Gravit

Scale-dependent metric and causal structures in Quantum Einstein Gravity

Within the asymptotic safety scenario for gravity various conceptual issues related to the scale dependence of the metric are analyzed. The running effective field equations implied by the effective average action of Quantum Einstein Gravity (QEG) and the resulting families of resolution dependent metrics are discussed. The status of scale dependent vs. scale independent diffeomorphisms is clarified, and the difference between isometries implemented by scale dependent and independent Killing vectors is explained. A concept of scale dependent causality is proposed and illustrated by various simple examples. The possibility of assigning an "intrinsic length" to objects in a QEG spacetime is also discussed.Comment: 52 page

Boundary States of c=1 and 3/2 Rational Conformal Field Theories

We study the boundary states for the rational points in the moduli spaces of c=1 conformal and c=3/2 superconformal field theories, including the isolated Ginsparg points. We use the orbifold and simple-current techniques to relate the boundary states of different theories and to obtain symmetry-breaking, non-Cardy boundary states. We show some interesting examples of fractional and twisted branes on orbifold spaces.Comment: Latex, 46 pages, 1 figur

Langevin dynamics of the Lebowitz-Percus model

We revisit the hard-spheres lattice gas model in the spherical approximation proposed by Lebowitz and Percus (J. L. Lebowitz, J. K. Percus, Phys. Rev.{\ 144} (1966) 251). Although no disorder is present in the model, we find that the short-range dynamical restrictions in the model induce glassy behavior. We examine the off-equilibrium Langevin dynamics of this model and study the relaxation of the density as well as the correlation, response and overlap two-time functions. We find that the relaxation proceeds in two steps as well as absence of anomaly in the response function. By studying the violation of the fluctuation-dissipation ratio we conclude that the glassy scenario of this model corresponds to the dynamics of domain growth in phase ordering kinetics.Comment: 21 pages, RevTeX, 14 PS figure

N=4 superconformal mechanics as a Non linear Realization

An action for a superconformal particle is constructed using the non linear realization method for the group PSU(1,1|2), without introducing superfields. The connection between PSU(1,1|2) and black hole physics is discussed. The lagrangian contains six arbitrary constants and describes a non-BPS superconformal particle. The BPS case is obtained if a precise relation between the constants in the lagrangian is verified, which implies that the action becomes kappa-symmetric.Comment: new subection, references added and new acknowledgment

Jain States in a Matrix Theory of the Quantum Hall Effect

The U(N) Maxwell-Chern-Simons matrix gauge theory is proposed as an extension of Susskind's noncommutative approach. The theory describes D0-branes, nonrelativistic particles with matrix coordinates and gauge symmetry, that realize a matrix generalization of the quantum Hall effect. Matrix ground states obtained by suitable projections of higher Landau levels are found to be in one-to-one correspondence with the expected Laughlin and Jain hierarchical states. The Jain composite-fermion construction follows by gauge invariance via the Gauss law constraint. In the limit of commuting, ``normal'' matrices the theory reduces to eigenvalue coordinates that describe realistic electrons with Calogero interaction. The Maxwell-Chern-Simons matrix theory improves earlier noncommutative approaches and could provide another effective theory of the fractional Hall effect.Comment: 35 pages, 3 figure

Scale-Invariance and the Strong Coupling Problem

The effective theory of adiabatic fluctuations around arbitrary Friedmann-Robertson-Walker backgrounds - both expanding and contracting - allows for more than one way to obtain scale-invariant two-point correlations. However, as we show in this paper, it is challenging to produce scale-invariant fluctuations that are weakly coupled over the range of wavelengths accessible to cosmological observations. In particular, requiring the background to be a dynamical attractor, the curvature fluctuations are scale-invariant and weakly coupled for at least 10 e-folds only if the background is close to de Sitter space. In this case, the time-translation invariance of the background guarantees time-independent n-point functions. For non-attractor solutions, any predictions depend on assumptions about the evolution of the background even when the perturbations are outside of the horizon. For the simplest such scenario we identify the regions of the parameter space that avoid both classical and quantum mechanical strong coupling problems. Finally, we present extensions of our results to backgrounds in which higher-derivative terms play a significant role.Comment: 17 pages + appendices, 3 figures; v2: typos fixe

Generating Function for Particle-Number Probability Distribution in Directed Percolation

We derive a generic expression for the generating function (GF) of the particle-number probability distribution (PNPD) for a simple reaction diffusion model that belongs to the directed percolation universality class. Starting with a single particle on a lattice, we show that the GF of the PNPD can be written as an infinite series of cumulants taken at zero momentum. This series can be summed up into a complete form at the level of a mean-field approximation. Using the renormalization group techniques, we determine logarithmic corrections for the GF at the upper critical dimension. We also find the critical scaling form for the PNPD and check its universality numerically in one dimension. The critical scaling function is found to be universal up to two non-universal metric factors.Comment: (v1,2) 8 pages, 5 figures; one-loop calculation corrected in response to criticism received from Hans-Karl Janssen, (v3) content as publishe