Talks

I will begin with a broad overview of the main ingredients of causal set theory, and then discuss the partial resolution of a long-standing "puzzle" in the causal set path sum. I will then discuss other causal set curiousities, ending with a brief overview of the challenges in constructing a realistic fully non-perturbative quantum dynamics. --- The presenter will be joining via Zoom for this talk.

The organizers requested an overview of Loop Quantum Gravity (LQG). However, this is an impossible task, especially for a 30 minute talk, given that the subject is over three decades old with tens of thousands of papers. Instead, I will outline some of the key distinguishing features of LQG and discuss an illustrative application. Hopefully these topics will complement those that will be covered by Bianca Dittrich and Lee Smolin, without too much of an overlap.

In the last few years, a remarkable link has been established between the soft theorems and asymptotic symmetries of quantum field theories: soft theorems are Ward identities of the asymptotic symmetry generators. In quantum electrodynamics, Weinberg's soft photon theorem is nothing but the Ward identity of a gauge transformation whose parameter is non-trivial at infinity. Likewise, Low's tree-level subleading soft photon theorem is the Ward identity of a gauge transformation whose parameter diverges linearly at infinity. More recently, it has been shown that Low's theorem receives loop corrections that are logarithmic in soft photon energy. Then, it is natural to ask whether such corrections are associated with some asymptotic symmetry of the S-matrix. There have been proposals for conserved charges whose Ward identities yield the loop-corrected soft theorems, but a clear symmetry interpretation remains elusive. We explore this question in the context of scalar QED, in hopes of shedding light on the connection between asymptotic symmetries and loop-corrected soft theorems.

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Zoom link https://pitp.zoom.us/j/94420835190?pwd=dEpOSHluRzFpVTg3Qm10OS9PTTU3dz09

The QUEST-DMC experiment, aimed at detecting sub-GeV dark matter, utilizes a unique approach by employing superfluid Helium-3 (He-3) in conjunction with quantum sensors. Superfluid He-3 stands out as an ideal target medium for sub-GeV dark matter searches, especially in the context of spin-dependent interactions. This choice aligns seamlessly with a wide array of theoretically motivated dark matter models. The experiment's projected sensitivity to various dark matter models, as well as its potential to set upper limits on dark matter interactions, will be presented.

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Zoom link https://pitp.zoom.us/j/99386484623?pwd=dGVQdFJKbEpPMUcrRUNLbHdIR2p3Zz09

QFT's remarkable success lies in its ability to yield precise predictions through e.g. scattering amplitudes, capturing the essence of running couplings in a gauge-invariant manner. However, the introduction of gravity disrupts this straightforward notion of momentum dependence, posing a significant challenge to our theoretical framework. Enter form factors—an ingenious concept that extends the idea of momentum dependence to the curved spacetime of quantum gravity. They form the central ingredient when discussing quantum gravity in a QFT language. Furthermore, within an effective action, form factors offer a unifying language, allowing us to compare and contrast different quantum gravity approaches apples-to-apples. I will give an overview of the ideas underlying form factors, their application to scattering problems, and their potential to put different approaches on the same footing.

In the context of perturbative quantum field theory (QFT), the addition of quadratic-curvature invariants to the Einstein-Hilbert action makes it possible to achieve strict renormalizability in four dimensions. This theory exhibits unusual features due to an additional massive spin-2 ghost which, in general, may cause instabilities. In the first part of this talk, we focus on the possibility of giving up locality as a way to avoid ghost-like degrees of freedom and provide a critical assessment on open questions in nonlocal theories of gravity, such as the uniqueness problem. In the second part of the talk, we take a step back and argue that, despite the presence of the ghost and actually thanks to it, Quadratic Gravity can still provide a consistent local perturbative QFT description of the gravitational interaction and explain new physics beyond Einstein's general relativity, e.g., it offers a natural explanation for the inflationary phase. Finally, we argue that a type of nonlocality in gravity can still occur non-perturbatively and show that a new lower bound on scattering amplitudes indicates that the gravitational interaction is intrinsically nonlocal if black holes form.

Anomaly of global symmetry is an important tool to study dynamics of quantum systems. In recent years, new non-invertible global symmetries are discovered in many quantum systems such as the 2d Ising model, Standard Model like theories, and lattice models. I will discuss constraints on the dynamics in 3+1d systems using anomalies of non-invertible symmetries from the perspective of bulk-boundary correspondence. The discussion is based on the work https://arxiv.org/abs/2308.11706 with Clay Cordova and Carolyn Zhang.

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Zoom link https://pitp.zoom.us/j/99162815973?pwd=M01nZXJIN2tCRjhuZlljNU1id01XQT09

Low mass galaxies challenge our picture of galaxy formation and are an intriguing laboratory for the study of star formation, feedback and dark matter physics. I will present results from high resolution, cosmological simulations that contain many (isolated) dwarf galaxies [the MARVEL dwarfs] as well as satellite dwarf galaxies [the DC Justice League]. Together, they create the largest collection of high-resolution simulated dwarf galaxies to date and the first flagship suite to resolve ultra-faint dwarf galaxies in multiple environments. This sample spans a wide range of physical (stellar and halo mass), and evolutionary properties (merger history). I will present results and predictions constraining star formation, feedback and dark matter physics soon testable by telescopes like JWST, Rubin's LSST and the Roman Space Telescope. Finally, I will present new work on measuring galaxy shapes and the diversity of rotation curves in the dwarf galaxy mass regime which may be used to distinguish dark matter model.

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Zoom link: https://pitp.zoom.us/j/99038411436?pwd=OFd1SEdUUXJkd0NLeWtrTUxGR0FCUT09