Two-Dimensional Lattice Gravity as a Spin System

Quantum gravity is studied in the path integral formulation applying the Regge calculus. Restricting the quadratic link lengths of the originally triangular lattice the path integral can be transformed to the partition function of a spin system with higher couplings on a Kagome lattice. Various measures acting as external field are considered. Extensions to matter fields and higher dimensions are discussed.Comment: 3 pages, uuencoded postscript file; Proceedings of the 2nd IMACS Conference on Computational Physics, St. Louis, Oct. 199

Lattice Models of Quantum Gravity

Standard Regge Calculus provides an interesting method to explore quantum gravity in a non-perturbative fashion but turns out to be a CPU-time demanding enterprise. One therefore seeks for suitable approximations which retain most of its universal features. The $Z_2$-Regge model could be such a desired simplification. Here the quadratic edge lengths $q$ of the simplicial complexes are restricted to only two possible values $q=1+\epsilon\sigma$, with $\sigma=\pm 1$, in close analogy to the ancestor of all lattice theories, the Ising model. To test whether this simpler model still contains the essential qualities of the standard Regge Calculus, we study both models in two dimensions and determine several observables on the same lattice size. In order to compare expectation values, e.g. of the average curvature or the Liouville field susceptibility, we employ in both models the same functional integration measure. The phase structure is under current investigation using mean field theory and numerical simulation.Comment: 4 pages, 1 figure

Two-Point Functions of Four-Dimensional Simplicial Quantum Gravity

We investigate the interaction mechanism of pure quantum gravity in Regge discretization. We compute volume-volume and link-link correlation functions. In a preliminary analysis the forces turn out to be of Yukawa type, at least on our finite lattice being away from the continuum limit.Comment: 3 pages, uuencoded postscript file; Proceedings of the XI International Symposion on Lattice Field Theory, Dallas, Oct. 199

SU(2) potentials in quantum gravity

We present investigations of the potential between static charges from a simulation of quantum gravity coupled to an SU(2) gauge field on $6^{3}\times 4$ and $8^{3}\times 4$ simplicial lattices. In the well-defined phase of the gravity sector where geometrical expectation values are stable, we study the correlations of Polyakov loops and extract the corresponding potentials between a source and sink separated by a distance $R$. In the confined phase, the potential has a linear form while in the deconfined phase, a screened Coulombic behavior is found. Our results indicate that quantum gravitational effects do not destroy confinement due to non-abelian gauge fields.Comment: 3 pages, contribution to Lattice 94 conference, uuencoded compressed postscript fil