RUI: Emergent Spacetime in Matrix Theory

该奖项资助哈维穆德学院教授Vatche Sahakian的研究活动。现代物理学中最大的未解决的问题之一是现代物理学的两大支柱，即量子力学（非常小的物理学）和广义相对论（引力物理学）的融合。 到目前为止，实现这种融合的最佳候选理论是弦理论。 Sahakian教授的研究探索了弦理论和量子引力的几个关键领域。 它研究了这样一种观点，即我们对空间的感知可能只是一种“涌现”的感知，这种感知来自量子力学在不同物体之间传播（或“纠缠”）信息的独特方式。 这种对时空性质的新思考最近显示出巨大的希望，可能是解决这一领域长期存在的问题的关键。 该项目还探索了黑洞的一些独特性质。 黑洞是检验我们物理定律有效性极限的极端物体，因此是理解量子引力的理想场所。 因此，该项目通过促进科学在其最基本的方向之一：发现和理解新的物理定律方面的进步来促进国家利益。 一个广泛的本科研究计划也是拟议项目的一个关键部分，包括理论物理现代主题的本科课程的课程开发部分。 这样的课程将有助于为物理系本科生提供研究生院的坚实基础。 PI还将继续编写一本关于经典场论的本科教科书，这是物理学的基石之一。Sahakian教授将研究量子纠缠中时空的出现。 这将主要在矩阵理论的背景下进行，矩阵理论是M理论的非微扰公式，因此也是量子引力的非微扰公式。 Sahakian教授将在黑洞物理学的背景下测试这些涌现时空的想法，试图解开黑洞视界的性质，最近的工作表明时空几何的可能崩溃，即使在很长的距离。 人们还希望这项研究将有助于更好地理解黑洞蒸发以及在将信息从黑洞内部传递到外部的过程中纠缠演化的细节。

This award funds the research activities of Professor Vatche Sahakian at Harvey Mudd College. One of the great unsolved problems in modern physics is the fusing of two of the pillars of modern physics, namely quantum mechanics (the physics of the very small) and general relativity (the physics of gravity). Thus far, the best candidate theory for accomplishing this fusion is string theory. Professor Sahakian's research explores several key areas in string theory and quantum gravity. It investigates the idea that our awareness of space may be only an "emergent" perception which arises from the unique ways in which quantum mechanics spreads (or "entangles") information across different objects. This new rethinking of the nature of spacetime has recently shown great promise and may be key to addressing the longstanding problems in this field. This project also explores some of the unique properties of black holes. Black holes are extreme objects that test the limits of validity of our physical laws and hence are the ideal playgrounds for understanding quantum gravity. This project therefore advances the national interest by promoting the progress of science in one of its most fundamental directions: the discovery and understanding of new physical laws. An extensive undergraduate research program is also a key part of the proposed project, including a course-development component for an undergraduate course on modern topics in theoretical physics. Such a course will help to provide undergraduate physics students with solid foundations for graduate school. The PI will also continue preparing an undergraduate textbook on classical field theory, a subject which forms one of the cornerstones of physics.More technically, Professor Sahakian will study the emergence of spacetime from quantum entanglement. This will be done primarily within the context of Matrix theory, a non-perturbative formulation of M-theory and hence of quantum gravity. Professor Sahakian will test these ideas of emergent spacetime within the setting of black-hole physics, attempting to unravel the nature of the black-hole horizon where recent work suggests the possible breakdown of spacetime geometry, even at long distances. It is also hoped that this research will lead to a better understanding of black-hole evaporation and the details of entanglement evolution in the process of transferring information from the interior of a black hole to the outside.