Author: Orlando Alvarez Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media ISBN: 146153772X Category : Science Languages : en Pages : 401
Book Description
The Cargese Workshop Random Surfaces and Quantum Gravity was held from May 27 to June 2, 1990. Little was known about string theory in the non-perturbative regime before Oetober 1989 when non-perturbative equations for the string partition functions were found by using methods based on the random triangulations of surfaees. This set of methods pro vides a deseription of non-eritical string theory or equivalently of the coupling of matter fields to quantum gravity in two dimensions. The Cargese meeting was very successful in that it provided the first opportunity to gather most of the active workers in the field for a fuH week of lectures and extensive informal discussions about these exeiting new developments. The main results were reviewed, recent advances were explained, new results and conjectures (which appear for the first time in these proceedings) were presented and discussed. Among the most important topics discussed at the workshop were: The relation of KdV theory to loop equations and the Virasoro algebra, new results in Liouville field theory, effective (1 + 1) dimensional theory for 2 - D quantum gravity coupled to c = 1 matter and its fermionization, proposal for a new geometrical interpretation of the string equation and possible definition of quantum Riemann surfaces, discussion of the string equation for the multi-matrix models, links with topological field theories of gravity, issues in using target space supersymmetry to define good theories, definition of the partition function via analytic continuation, new models of random surfaces
Author: David J Gross Publisher: World Scientific ISBN: 9814556300 Category : Languages : en Pages : 256
Book Description
In the past few years there has been much study of random two dimensional surfaces. These provide simple models of string theories with a few degrees of freedom, as well as toy models of quantum gravity. They have possible applications to the statistical mechanics of phase boundaries and to the development of an effective string description of QCD.Recently, methods have been developed to treat these theories nonperturbatively, based on discrete triangulations of the surfaces that can be generated by simple matrix models. Exact solutions with a rich mathematical structure have emerged. All these matters are discussed fully in this book.
Author: Poul Henrik Damgaard Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media ISBN: 1461537843 Category : Science Languages : en Pages : 382
Book Description
From August 21 through August 27, 1989 the Nato Advanced Research Workshop Probabilistic Methods in Quantum Field Theory and Quantum Gravity" was held at l'Institut d'Etudes Scientifiques, Cargese, France. This publication is the Proceedings of this workshop. The purpose of the workshop was to bring together a group of scientists who have been at the forefront of the development of probabilistic methods in Quantum Field Theory and Quantum Gravity. The original thought was to put emphasis on the introduction of stochastic processes in the understanding of Euclidean Quantum Field Theory, with also some discussion of recent progress in the field of stochastic numerical methods. During the final preparation of the meeting we broadened the scope to include all those Euclidean Quantum Field Theory descriptions that make direct reference to concepts from probability theory and statistical mechanics. Several of the main contributions centered around a more rigorous discussion of stochastic processes for the formulation of Euclidean Quantum Field Theory. These rather stringent mathematical approaches were contrasted with the more heuristic stochastic quantization scheme developed in 1981 by Parisi and Wu: Stochastic quan tization, its intrinsic BRST -structure and stochastic regularization appeared in many disguises and in connection with several different problems throughout the workshop.
Author: Jan Ambjorn Publisher: CRC Press ISBN: 1000776026 Category : Science Languages : en Pages : 329
Book Description
This graduate textbook provides an introduction to quantum gravity, when spacetime is two-dimensional. The quantization of gravity is the main missing piece of theoretical physics, but in two dimensions it can be done explicitly with elementary mathematical tools, but it still has most of the conceptional riddles present in higher dimensional (not yet known) quantum gravity. It provides an introduction to a very interdisciplinary field, uniting physics (quantum geometry) and mathematics (combinatorics) in a non-technical way, requiring no prior knowledge of quantum field theory or general relativity. Using the path integral, the chapters provide self-contained descriptions of random walks, random trees and random surfaces as statistical systems where the free relativistic particle, the relativistic bosonic string and two-dimensional quantum gravity are obtained as scaling limits at phase transition points of these statistical systems. The geometric nature of the theories allows one to perform the path integral by counting geometries. In this way the quantization of geometry becomes closely linked to the mathematical fields of combinatorics and probability theory. By counting the geometries, it is shown that the two-dimensional quantum world is fractal at all scales unless one imposes restrictions on the geometries. It is also discussed in simple terms how quantum geometry and quantum matter can interact strongly and change the properties both of the geometries and of the matter systems. It requires only basic undergraduate knowledge of classical mechanics, statistical mechanics and quantum mechanics, as well as some basic knowledge of mathematics at undergraduate level. It will be an ideal textbook for graduate students in theoretical and statistical physics and mathematics studying quantum gravity and quantum geometry. Key features: Presents the first elementary introduction to quantum geometry Explores how to understand quantum geometry without prior knowledge beyond bachelor level physics and mathematics. Contains exercises, problems and solutions to supplement and enhance learning
Author: Roberto Fernandez Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media ISBN: 3662028662 Category : Science Languages : en Pages : 446
Book Description
Simple random walks - or equivalently, sums of independent random vari ables - have long been a standard topic of probability theory and mathemat ical physics. In the 1950s, non-Markovian random-walk models, such as the self-avoiding walk,were introduced into theoretical polymer physics, and gradu ally came to serve as a paradigm for the general theory of critical phenomena. In the past decade, random-walk expansions have evolved into an important tool for the rigorous analysis of critical phenomena in classical spin systems and of the continuum limit in quantum field theory. Among the results obtained by random-walk methods are the proof of triviality of the cp4 quantum field theo ryin space-time dimension d (::::) 4, and the proof of mean-field critical behavior for cp4 and Ising models in space dimension d (::::) 4. The principal goal of the present monograph is to present a detailed review of these developments. It is supplemented by a brief excursion to the theory of random surfaces and various applications thereof. This book has grown out of research carried out by the authors mainly from 1982 until the middle of 1985. Our original intention was to write a research paper. However, the writing of such a paper turned out to be a very slow process, partly because of our geographical separation, partly because each of us was involved in other projects that may have appeared more urgent.
Author: Jan Ambjørn Publisher: Cambridge University Press ISBN: 9780521017367 Category : Science Languages : en Pages : 380
Book Description
This graduate level text describes in a unified fashion the statistical mechanics of random walks, random surfaces and random higher dimensional manifolds with an emphasis on the geometrical aspects of the theory and applications to the quantization of strings, gravity and topological field theory. With chapters on random walks, random surfaces, two-and higher-dimensional quantum gravity, topological quantum field theories and Monte Carlo simulations of random geometries, the text provides a self-contained account of quantum geometry from a statistical field theory point of view. The approach uses discrete approximations and develops analytical and numerical tools. Continuum physics is recovered through scaling limits at phase transition points and the relation to conformal quantum field theories coupled to quantum gravity is described. The most important numerical work is covered, but the main aim is to develop mathematically precise results that have wide applications. Many diagrams and references are included.
Author: Lárus Thorlacius Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media ISBN: 9780792364757 Category : Mathematics Languages : en Pages : 476
Book Description
Papers from an August 1999 NATO Advanced Study Institute held in Iceland report on recent advances in superstring theory, which is the leading candidate for a unified description of all known elementary particles and interactions. Chapters examine D-branes in string theory, moduli spaces of Calaba-Yau compactifications, the matrix model of M-theory, the holographic principle, Born-Infeld actions and D-brane physics, superconformal quantum mechanics and multi-black hole moduli spaces, large-N gauge theories, random surfaces, and Lorentzian and Euclidean quantum gravity. The editors are affiliated with the Science Institute of the University of Iceland. Annotation copyrighted by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR
Author: Orlando Alvarez
Author: David J Gross
Author: David J. Gross
Author: Scott Sheffield
Author: Jan Ambjørn
Author: Poul Henrik Damgaard
Author: Jan Ambjorn
Author: Roberto Fernandez
Author: Jan Ambjørn
Author: Lárus Thorlacius