29 research outputs found
Modelling Planck-scale Lorentz violation via analogue models
Astrophysical tests of Planck-suppressed Lorentz violations had been
extensively studied in recent years and very stringent constraints have been
obtained within the framework of effective field theory. There are however
still some unresolved theoretical issues, in particular regarding the so called
"naturalness problem" - which arises when postulating that Planck-suppressed
Lorentz violations arise only from operators with mass dimension greater than
four in the Lagrangian. In the work presented here we shall try to address this
problem by looking at a condensed-matter analogue of the Lorentz violations
considered in quantum gravity phenomenology. Specifically, we investigate the
class of two-component BECs subject to laser-induced transitions between the
two components, and we show that this model is an example for Lorentz
invariance violation due to ultraviolet physics. We shall show that such a
model can be considered to be an explicit example high-energy Lorentz
violations where the ``naturalness problem'' does not arise.Comment: Talk given at the Fourth Meeting on Constrained Dynamics and Quantum
Gravity (QG05), Cala Gonone (Sardinia, Italy) September 12-16, 200
Lorentz Invariance and the semiclassical approximation of loop quantum gravity
It is shown that the field equations derived from an effective interaction
hamiltonian for Maxwell and gravitational fields in the semiclassical
approximation of loop quantum gravity using rotational invariant states (such
as weave states) are Lorentz invariant. To derive this result, which is in
agreement with the observational evidence, we use the geometrical properties of
the electromagnetic field.Comment: 6 page
Threshold configurations in the presence of Lorentz violating dispersion relations
A general characterization of lower and upper threshold configurations for
two particle reactions is determined under the assumptions that the single
particle dispersion relations E(p) are rotationally invariant and monotonic in
p, and that energy and momentum are conserved and additive for multiple
particles. It is found that at a threshold the final particle momenta are
always parallel and the initial momenta are always anti-parallel. The
occurrence of new phenomena not occurring in a Lorentz invariant setting, such
as upper thresholds and asymmetric pair production thresholds, is explained,
and an illustrative example is given.Comment: 5 pages, 3 figure
Modified Dispersion Relations from the Renormalization Group of Gravity
We show that the running of gravitational couplings, together with a suitable
identification of the renormalization group scale can give rise to modified
dispersion relations for massive particles. This result seems to be compatible
with both the frameworks of effective field theory with Lorentz invariance
violation and deformed special relativity. The phenomenological consequences
depend on which of the frameworks is assumed. We discuss the nature and
strength of the available constraints for both cases and show that in the case
of Lorentz invariance violation, the theory would be strongly constrained.Comment: revtex4, 9 pages, updated to match published versio
Testing Lorentz invariance of dark matter
We study the possibility to constrain deviations from Lorentz invariance in
dark matter (DM) with cosmological observations. Breaking of Lorentz invariance
generically introduces new light gravitational degrees of freedom, which we
represent through a dynamical timelike vector field. If DM does not obey
Lorentz invariance, it couples to this vector field. We find that this coupling
affects the inertial mass of small DM halos which no longer satisfy the
equivalence principle. For large enough lumps of DM we identify a (chameleon)
mechanism that restores the inertial mass to its standard value. As a
consequence, the dynamics of gravitational clustering are modified. Two
prominent effects are a scale dependent enhancement in the growth of large
scale structure and a scale dependent bias between DM and baryon density
perturbations. The comparison with the measured linear matter power spectrum in
principle allows to bound the departure from Lorentz invariance of DM at the
per cent level.Comment: 42 pages, 9 figure
Einstein-aether as a quantum effective field theory
The possibility that Lorentz symmetry is violated in gravitational processes
is relatively unconstrained by experiment, in stark contrast with the level of
accuracy to which Lorentz symmetry has been confirmed in the matter sector. One
model of Lorentz violation in the gravitational sector is Einstein-aether
theory, in which Lorentz symmetry is broken by giving a vacuum expectation
value to a dynamical vector field. In this paper we analyse the effective
theory for quantised gravitational and aether perturbations. We show that this
theory possesses a controlled effective expansion within dimensional
regularisation, that is, for any process there are a finite number of Feynman
diagrams which will contribute to a given order of accuracy. We find that there
is no log-running of the two-derivative phenomenological parameters, justifying
the use of experimental constraints for these parameters obtained over many
orders of magnitude in energy scale. Given the stringent experimental bounds on
two-derivative Lorentz-violating operators, we estimate the size of matter
Lorentz-violation which arises due to loop effects. This amounts to an
estimation of the natural size of coefficients for Lorentz-violating
dimension-six matter operators, which in turn can be used to obtain a new bound
on the two-derivative parameters of this theory.Comment: 21 page
Signature change events: A challenge for quantum gravity?
Within the framework of either Euclidian (functional-integral) quantum
gravity or canonical general relativity the signature of the manifold is a
priori unconstrained. Furthermore, recent developments in the emergent
spacetime programme have led to a physically feasible implementation of
signature change events. This suggests that it is time to revisit the sometimes
controversial topic of signature change in general relativity. Specifically, we
shall focus on the behaviour of a quantum field subjected to a manifold
containing regions of different signature. We emphasise that, regardless of the
underlying classical theory, there are severe problems associated with any
quantum field theory residing on a signature-changing background. (Such as the
production of what is naively an infinite number of particles, with an infinite
energy density.) From the viewpoint of quantum gravity phenomenology, we
discuss possible consequences of an effective Lorentz symmetry breaking scale.
To more fully understand the physics of quantum fields exposed to finite
regions of Euclidean-signature (Riemannian) geometry, we show its similarities
with the quantum barrier penetration problem, and the super-Hubble horizon
modes encountered in cosmology. Finally we raise the question as to whether
signature change transitions could be fully understood and dynamically
generated within (modified) classical general relativity, or whether they
require the knowledge of a full theory of quantum gravity.Comment: 33 pages. 4 figures; V2: 3 references added, no physics changes; V3:
now 24 pages - significantly shortened - argument simplified and more focused
- no physics changes - this version accepted for publication in Classical and
Quantum Gravit
Shape in an Atom of Space: Exploring quantum geometry phenomenology
A phenomenology for the deep spatial geometry of loop quantum gravity is
introduced. In the context of a simple model, an atom of space, it is shown how
purely combinatorial structures can affect observations. The angle operator is
used to develop a model of angular corrections to local, continuum flat-space
3-geometries. The physical effects involve neither breaking of local Lorentz
invariance nor Planck scale suppression, but rather reply on only the
combinatorics of SU(2) recoupling. Bhabha scattering is discussed as an example
of how the effects might be observationally accessible.Comment: 14 pages, 7 figures; v2 references adde