The quantization of gravity in globally hyperbolic spacetimes

DOI10.4310/ATMP.2013.V17.N6.A5MaRDI QIDQ2511237zbMATH OpenOpenAlexFDO

Authors Claus Gerhardt

Publication date 5 August 2014

Published in Advances in Theoretical and Mathematical Physics (Search for Journal in Brave)

Full work available at URL https://arxiv.org/abs/1205.1427

zbMATH Keywords

Algebraic Quantum Field TheoryCauchy problemconstraintsenergy constraintfiber bundle formalismgeneral relativity: canonical quantizationWheeler-DeWitt metric

Mathematics Subject Classification ID

Applications of differential geometry to physics (53Z05) Quantum field theory on curved space or space-time backgrounds (81T20) Einstein's equations (general structure, canonical formalism, Cauchy problems) (83C05) Equations of motion in general relativity and gravitational theory (83C10) Quantization of the gravitational field (83C45)

Abstract: We apply the ADM approach to obtain a Hamiltonian description of the Einstein-Hilbert action. In doing so we add four new ingredients: (i) We eliminate the diffeomorphism constraints. (ii) We replace the densities $sqrtg$ by a function $f(x,g_{ij})$ with the help of a fixed metric $chi$ such that the Lagrangian and hence the Hamiltonian are functions. (iii) We consider the Lagrangian to be defined in a fiber bundle with base space $so$ and fibers F(x) which can be treated as Lorentzian manifolds equipped with the Wheeler-DeWitt metric. It turns out that the fibers are globally hyperbolic. (iv) The Hamiltonian operator $H$ is a normally hyperbolic operator in the bundle acting only in the fibers and the Wheeler-DeWitt equation $Hu=0$ is a hyperbolic equation in the bundle. Since the corresponding Cauchy problem can be solved for arbitrary smooth data with compact support, we then apply the standard techniques of QFT which can be naturally modified to work in the bundle.

Review text

To canonically quantize gravity (classically described by Einstein's theory of general relativity) the author modifies the procedure usually applied as follows: (i) To eliminate the diffeomorphism constraint, the so-called momentum constraint, an appropriately specified coordinate system is introduced, (ii) to arrive, instead at densities, at Lagrangian and Hamiltonian functions, respectively, an auxiliary metric is introduced, whose root of the determinant is proportional to the root of the determinant of the space-time metric, and (iii) the Lagrangian of gravity is considered to be defined in a fiber bundle with the Riemannian space-time as base space and a fiber defined by a manifold equipped with the Wheeler-DeWitt metric. Assumption (i) is motivated by the remark that ``the diffeomorphism constraint is usually ignored since nobody knows how to handle it what is a somewhat strange argument for in literature methods to handle it can be found. Modification (ii) is assumed in order to be closer to the usual formalism of quantum field theory. As shown in the paper, when performing the Legendre transformation, the auxiliary metric can be ignored. As to (iii), while generally the fiber bundle formalism is useful to solve global problems, despite this it is taken here into consideration where only local coordinate carts are considered. However, the reference to some of its aspects is insofar helpful as some theorems in the paper are proved this way. It is shown that the fibers are globally hyperbolic, the Hamiltonian operator is normally hyperbolic, the Wheeler-DeWitt equation is a hyperbolic equation in the bundle, and the corresponding Cauchy problem can be solved for arbitrary smooth data with compact support. Finally, the author applies ``the standard techniques of Algebraic Quantum Field Theory which can be naturally modified to work in the bundle. Reviewer's remark: Unfortunately, this approach is not compared with that one given by Thiemann and others although a Thiemann paper appears uncommentedly in the list of references.

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• The quantization of a Kerr-AdS black hole
• Lagrangian constraints and renormalization of 4D gravity
• Quantum energy inequalities and local covariance. I. Globally hyperbolic spacetimes
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• QUANTIZATION OF LINEARIZED GRAVITY IN COSMOLOGICAL VACUUM SPACETIMES
• Semiclassical gravity with a conformally covariant field in globally hyperbolic spacetimes
• The quantization of gravity

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