Quantum Fields, Geometric Fluctuations, and the Structure of Spacetime

Abstract

Quantum fluctuations of the vacuum stress-energy tensor are highly non-Gaussian, and can have unexpectedly large effects on spacetime geometry. In this paper, we study a two-dimensional dilaton gravity model coupled to a conformal field, in which the distribution of vacuum fluctuations is well understood. In this model, the fluctuations of the matter field are responsible for the fluctuations of the geometry itself. By analyzing the geodesic deviation in this model, we show that a pencil of massive particles propagating on this fuzzy spacetime eventually converges and collapses. This is consistent with our earlier analysis of null geodesics in [Phys. Rev. Lett.\ 107, 021303 (2011)].

5 pages, 5 figures. v3: major revision. The fluctuations of the stress-energy tensor are now allowed to act independently on different spacetime patches. The text has been updated accordingly. v4: typos corrected, final published version

References in corpus (4)

• Vacuum Fluctuations and the Small Scale Structure of Spacetime
• Probability distributions for the stress tensor in conformal field theories
• Probability Distributions for Space and Time Averaged Quantum Stress Tensors
• Spacetime geometry fluctuations and geodesic deviation

Cited by in corpus (6)

• Spacetime foam: a review
• Probability Distributions for Space and Time Averaged Quantum Stress Tensors
• Quantum Fluctuations of Fields and Stress Tensors
• Frequency Spectra Analysis of Space and Time Averaged Quantum Stress Tensor Fluctuations
• Numerical Simulation of Quantum Field Fluctuations
• Probability Distribution for Vacuum Energy Flux Fluctuations in Two Spacetime Dimensions