Talks

Gravity is unique among the other forces in that within general relativity we are able to do calculations which, when properly interpreted, give us information about non-perturbative quantum gravity. A classic example is Bekenstein and Hawking's calculation of the entropy of a black hole, and a more recent example is the calculation of the ``Page curve'' for certain evaporating black holes. A common feature of both of these calculations is that they compute entropies without using von Neumann's formula S=-Tr(\rho \log \rho). In this strange situation where we are able to compute entropies without understanding the details of the states for which they are the entropy, quantum information theory is a powerful tool that lets us extract information about those states. In this talk I'll review aspects of these developments, emphasizing in particular the role of quantum extremal surfaces and quantum error correction.

Condensed matter physics is the study of the complex behaviour of a large number of interacting particles such that their collective behaviour gives rise to emergent properties. We will discuss some interesting quantum condensed matter systems where their intriguing emergent phenomena arise due to strong coupling. We will revisit the Landau paradigm of Fermi liquid theory and hence understand the properties of the non-Fermi liquid systems which cannot be described within the Landau framework, due to the destruction of the Landau quasiparticles. In particular, we will focus on critical Fermi surface states, where there is a well-defined Fermi surface, but no quasiparticles, as a result of the strong interactions between the Fermi surface and some massless boson(s). We will outline a framework to extract the low-energy physics of such systems in a controlled approximation, using the tool of dimensional regularization.

 

 

This talk will provide an overview of current approaches to quantum gravity, with their respective merits and open problems (`comparative quantum gravity'). To this aim I will focus on some key issues that must be addressed by all approaches

Zoom Link:  https://pitp.zoom.us/j/93581608531?pwd=d3NRQXRGNTNISkhuWmxLYkJMZllTUT09

Based on recent work arXiv:1902.08207 and arXiv:1911.02018 with E. Verlinde.

The discovery of gravitational wave signals from merger events of massive binary-black-hole (BBH) systems have prompted a renewed debate in the scientific community about the existence of primordial black holes (PBHs) of O(1-100) solar masses. These objects may have formed in the early Universe and could constitute a significant portion of the elusive dark matter that, according to standard cosmology, makes up the majority of the matter content in the universe. I will review the most recent developments of this field, with focus on multi-messenger prospects of detection. In the first part of the talk, I will present the prospects of discovery for both a hypothetical PBH population and the guaranteed population of astrophysical isolated black holes in our Galaxy, based on the radio and X-ray emission from the interstellar gas that is being accreted onto them (the “shiny dresses”). A future detection will be possible thanks to the expected performance of forthcoming radio facilities such as SKA and ngVLA. Then, I will turn my attention to scenarios where primordial black holes constitute a sub-dominant component of the dark matter, and study the impact of dark matter mini-spikes that are expected to form around them (the “dark dresses”) on several observables. In this context, I will first present an updated computation of the PBH merger rate as a function of DM fraction and redshift that takes into account the impact of the dark dresses. Then, I will discuss the observational prospects of these dresses in binary systems composed of a stellar-mass and an intermediate-mass black hole: I will show a novel calculation of the dephasing of the gravitational waveform induced by the DM spike, potentially detectable with the LISA space interferometer.DARK AND SHINY DRESSES AROUND BLACK HOLES DANIELE GAGGERO (UAM)July 6, 2020 Zoom Line: https://laurentian.zoom.us/j/92591146494

Over the last decade, the Effective Field Theory of Large Scale Structure (EFTofLSS) has emerged as a frontrunner in the effort to produce accurate models of cosmological statistics. Quantities such as power spectra can be fit with sub-percent precision, and there is a wealth of literature applying the formalism to more complex statistics. It is interesting to ask what lies ahead for the theory. Can it be used for cosmological parameter inference? And is it just for statistics based on the 3D density field?

 

In this talk, I will present a pedagogical introduction to the EFTofLSS, discussing its motivation and basic formalism, as well as a few of its theoretical challenges. To demonstrate the utility of the theory beyond the blackboard, I will discuss the analysis of galaxy power spectra. Using this model, competitive constraints can be placed on cosmology utilizing all the large-scale spatial information, not just the position of the Baryon Acoustic Oscillations. In particular, this yields the strongest CMB-independent measurement of H0. 

 

In answering the second question, I will introduce two less conventional applications of the EFTofLSS. Firstly, the marked density field. This is simply the matter field weighted by its local overdensity, and recent works have shown its power spectrum to be capable of placing strong constraints on the neutrino mass. I will discussing its perturbative modeling, highlighting its unusual features, and how the model allows us to shed light on the surprising constraining of the statistic. An additional statistic of interest is weak lensing. Creating an analytic model for this has its own complications, since it is sensitive to a large range of scales, requiring extensions to the usual EFTofLSS modeling. Crucial to this effort is the development of a matter power spectrum model which is accurate on all scales; I will present the results of recent modeling efforts within the ‘Effective Halo Model’, and discuss future applications to integrated statistics such as weak lensing.

Zoom Link: https://pitp.zoom.us/j/91697113596?pwd=OTh3ZjZ5SHd5Q09sTFdReUMyb0hpUT09

After the discovery of the Higgs boson in 2012, the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) at CERN has turned from a discovery machine to a precision machine. The highly boosted events measured by the LHC experiments are, for the first time, providing us a window on the details of the electroweak symmetry breaking mechanism. A crucial condition to maximise the reach of these studies is a profound understanding of the theoretical implications of perturbative Quantum Field Theory, and in particular of Quantum ChromoDynamics (QCD), for the physics of hadronic collisions at the LHC. In this talk, I will provide an account of the opportunities and the challenges that precision physics at the LHC can offer, focusing in particular on the recent developments in our understanding of higher order calculations in perturbative Quantum Field Theory and how they can help us understand the Higgs sector of the Standard Model.

Hessenberg varieties are a distinguished family of projective varieties associated to a semisimple complex algebraic group. We use the formalism of perverse sheaves to study their cohomology rings. We give a partial characterization, in terms of the Springer correspondence, of the irreducible representations which appear in the action of the Weyl group on the cohomology ring of a regular semisimple Hessenberg variety. We also prove a support theorem for the universal family of regular Hessenberg varieties, and we deduce that its fibers, though not necessarily smooth, always have the "Kahler package". This is joint work with Peter Crooks.

Categorical representation theory is filled with graded additive categories (defined by generators and relations) whose Grothendieck groups are algebras over \mathbb{Z}[q,q^{-1}]. For example, Khovanov-Lauda-Rouquier (KLR) algebras categorify the quantum group, and the diagrammatic Hecke categories categorify Hecke algebras. Khovanov introduced Hopfological algebra in 2006 as a method to potentially categorify the specialization of these \mathbb{Z}[q,q^{-1}]-algebras at q = \zeta_n a root of unity. The schtick is this: one equips the category (e.g. the KLR algebra) with a derivation d of degree 2, which satisfies d^p = 0 after specialization to characteristic p, making this specialization into a p-dg algebra. The p-dg Grothendieck group of a p-dg algebra is automatically a module over \mathbb{Z}[\zeta_{2p}]... but it is NOT automatically the specialization of the ordinary Grothendieck group at a root of unity! Upgrading the categorification to a p-dg algebra was done for quantum groups by Qi-Khovanov and Qi-Elias. Recently, Qi-Elias accomplished the task for the diagrammatic Hecke algebra in type A, and ruled out the possibility for most other types. Now the question is: what IS the p-dg Grothendieck group? Do you get the quantum group/hecke algebra at a root of unity, or not? This is a really hard question, and currently the only techniques for establishing such a result involve explicit knowledge of all the important idempotents in the category. These techniques sufficed for quantum \mathfrak{sl}_n with n \le 3, but new techniques are required to make further progress. After reviewing the theory of p-dg algebras and their Grothendieck groups, we will present some new techniques and conjectures, which we hope will blow your mind. Everything is joint with You Qi.