The Ward Identity from the Background Field Dependence of the Effective Action

The dependence of the effective action for gauge theories on the background field obeys an exact identity. We argue that for Abelian theories the Ward identity follows from the more general background field identity. This observation is particularly relevant for the anomalous Ward identity valid for gauge theories with an effective infrared cutoff as used for flow equations.Comment: 8 page

Renormalization Group Flow of Quantum Gravity in the Einstein-Hilbert Truncation

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 discussed. The non-trivial fixed point which, if present in the exact theory, might render Quantum Einstein Gravity nonperturbatively renormalizable is investigated for various spacetime dimensionalities.Comment: 58 pages, latex, 24 figure

Renormalization group improved gravitational actions: a Brans-Dicke approach

A new framework for exploiting information about the renormalization group (RG) behavior of gravity in a dynamical context is discussed. The Einstein-Hilbert action is RG-improved by replacing Newton's constant and the cosmological constant by scalar functions in the corresponding Lagrangian density. The position dependence of $G$ and $\Lambda$ is governed by a RG equation together with an appropriate identification of RG scales with points in spacetime. The dynamics of the fields $G$ and $\Lambda$ does not admit a Lagrangian description in general. Within the Lagrangian formalism for the gravitational field they have the status of externally prescribed ``background'' fields. The metric satisfies an effective Einstein equation similar to that of Brans-Dicke theory. Its consistency imposes severe constraints on allowed backgrounds. In the new RG-framework, $G$ and $\Lambda$ carry energy and momentum. It is tested in the setting of homogeneous-isotropic cosmology and is compared to alternative approaches where the fields $G$ and $\Lambda$ do not carry gravitating 4-momentum. The fixed point regime of the underlying RG flow is studied in detail.Comment: LaTeX, 72 pages, no figure

Renormalization of the Topological Charge in Yang-Mills Theory

The conditions leading to a nontrivial renormalization of the topological charge in four--dimensional Yang--Mills theory are discussed. It is shown that if the topological term is regarded as the limit of a certain nontopological interaction, quantum effects due to the gauge bosons lead to a finite multiplicative renormalization of the theta--parameter while fermions give rise to an additional shift of theta. A truncated form of an exact renormalization group equation is used to study the scale dependence of the theta--parameter. Possible implications for the strong CP--problem of QCD are discussed.Comment: 31 pages, late

The contribution of methanol to the 3.4 micron feature in comets

With the advent of improved detectors and improved moderate resolution spectrometers several interesting features have been seen in the infrared spectra of comets. In particular, an emission excess at 3.52 microns was observed in several comets, and has recently been tentatively assigned to the nu 3 band of methanol (CH3OH). Using a developed model it is possible to calculate the relative strengths of the CH3OH features. The 3.52 microns emission strengths were used in a number of comets to retrieve methanol amounts, and the model was used to predict the fraction of the 3.4 micron flux which is contributed by the species. Implications for cometary formation are discussed

The role of Background Independence for Asymptotic Safety in Quantum Einstein Gravity

We discuss various basic conceptual issues related to coarse graining flows in quantum gravity. In particular the requirement of background independence is shown to lead to renormalization group (RG) flows which are significantly different from their analogs on a rigid background spacetime. The importance of these findings for the asymptotic safety approach to Quantum Einstein Gravity (QEG) is demonstrated in a simplified setting where only the conformal factor is quantized. We identify background independence as a (the ?) key prerequisite for the existence of a non-Gaussian RG fixed point and the renormalizability of QEG.Comment: 2 figures. Talk given by M.R. at the WE-Heraeus-Seminar "Quantum Gravity: Challenges and Perspectives", Bad Honnef, April 14-16, 2008; to appear in General Relativity and Gravitatio

Automated NLO QCD Corrections with WHIZARD

We briefly discuss the current status of NLO QCD automation in the Monte Carlo event generator WHIZARD. The functionality is presented for the explicit study of off-shell top quark production with associated backgrounds at a lepton collider.Comment: 9 pages, 5 figures, to appear in the proceedings of the European Physical Society Conference on High Energy Physics 2015 (EPS-HEP 2015), Vienna, Austria, 22nd to 29th of July 201

Matching NLO QCD Corrections in WHIZARD with the POWHEG scheme

Building on the new automatic subtraction of NLO amplitudes in WHIZARD, we present our implementation of the POWHEG scheme to match radiative corrections consistently with the parton shower. We apply this general framework to two linear collider processes, $e^+e^-\,\to\,t\bar{t}$ and $e^+e^-\,\to\,t\bar{t}H$.Comment: 7 pages, 4 figures, to appear in the proceedings of the European Physical Society Conference on High Energy Physics 2015 (EPS-HEP 2015), Vienna, Austria, 22nd to 29th of July 201

Density-functional theory investigation of oxygen adsorption at Pd(11N)(N=3,5,7) vicinal surfaces

We present a density-functional theory study addressing the on-surface adsorption of oxygen at the Pd(11N) (N =3,5,7) vicinal surfaces, which exhibit (111) steps and (100) terraces of increasing width. We find the binding to be predominantly governed by the local coordination at the adsorption site. This leads to very similar bonding properties at the threefold step sites of all three vicinal surfaces, while the binding at the central fourfold hollow site in the four atomic row terrace of Pd(117) is already very little disturbed by the presence of the neighboring steps.Comment: 9 pages including 4 figures; related publications can be found at http://www.fhi-berlin.mpg.de/th/th.htm