Towards the Microscopic Structure of Space-Time

这项研究的目标是在极短的时间间隔内揭示和理解空间和时间的本质。这项研究的基本假设是，物理过程的空间和时间间隔是离散的，而不是无限可分的。研究主题包括(I)继续寻找可能违反运动完全相对论的可观测后果，称为“洛伦兹破坏”(LV)，(Ii)研究短距离LV对黑洞熵和霍金辐射的影响，(Iii)研究LV对时间在量子引力中的作用这一深层次问题的影响，以及(Iv)建立离散动力学时空的物理模型。还将进行探索引力场方程的热力学解释的研究，以及黑洞的量子蒸发的研究。时间和空间的性质是一个古老的问题，它构成了科学的基本框架。科学知识的发展与我们对这个问题的认识的加深是齐头并进的。许多人认为，要成功解决当今最基本的科学问题，需要对时间和空间的性质有新的见解。促进这种洞察力是本研究的目标。这项研究将涉及对年轻的博士后和博士后科学家的培训，结果将在科学出版物和演示文稿中传播。它还将为从研究生到本科生的大学教学提供信息，并将以讲座和书面形式与公众分享。

The goal of this research is to make progress towards uncovering and understanding the nature of space and time at extremely short intervals. The underlying hypothesis motivating most of this research is that, rather than being infinitely divisible, space and time intervals of physical rocesses are discrete. The research topics include (i) a continued search for observable consequences of the possible violation of the complete relativity of motion, called "Lorentz violation" (LV), (ii) study of the impact of short distance LV on black hole entropy and Hawking radiation, (iii) investigation of the implications of LV for the deep problem of the role of time in quantum gravity, and (iv) formulation of physical models of discrete dynamical spacetime. Research probing a thermodynamic interpretation of the gravitational field equation, and a study of the quantum evaporation of black holes will also be undertaken. The nature of time and space is an age old question that underlies the basic framework of science. The development of scientific knowledge has gone hand in hand with deepening our understanding of this question. Many believe that to successfully address the most fundamental scientific questions of today will require new insights into the nature of time and space. Contributing to that insight is the goal of this research. The research will involve the training of young pre-doctoral and postdoctoral scientists, and the results will be communicated in scientific publications and presentations. It will also inform university instruction from graduate to undergraduate levels, and will be shared with the general public in lectures and in written form.