Particles and Strings in the Gravitating and Evolving Universe

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This award funds the research of Professors Mina Aganagic, Raphael Bousso, and Petr Horava at the University of California, Berkeley.In the first two decades of the 21st century, we have witnessed an unprecedented convergence of discoveries that are bringing into focus fundamental questions about the origin, structure, and evolution of the Universe. The new experimental data in particle physics and cosmology are being confronted with theoretical questions: What is the Universe made of? How are the puzzles of gravity resolved when gravity is unified with quantum mechanics? What are the nature and origins of the fundamental constituents of matter, their interactions, and the observed patterns of cosmological structure in the Universe? Together, experimental discoveries and new theoretical ideas are leading to an effective synthesis of previously disconnected areas of research. This unprecedented convergence of experimental and theoretical results, which aims to formulate the fundamental laws of nature in one coherent framework, is of utmost importance for the advancement of the national interest because it promotes and advances progress in the natural sciences and in our understanding of the laws of the Universe at scales ranging from the microscopic and subatomic to the cosmological. In their research, Professors Aganagic, Bousso, and Horava will perform fundamental theoretical research at the crossroads of particle physics, quantum gravity, cosmology, and string theory. In addition to addressing some of the deepest puzzles about the laws of the Universe, this research is envisioned to have significant broader impacts. By involving postdocs and students in cutting-edge theoretical research, this research will significantly contribute to the critical training of the next generation of scientists. This research will also enrich the public domain, with Professors Aganagic, Bousso, and Horava delivering public lectures on the results of this research. This research will also improve the academic curriculum at UC Berkeley, with new findings being directly integrated into new and existing courses.More specifically, Professor Aganagic will pursue the study of the refined topological string and gauge theories, the Langlands correspondence, and little string theory. Professor Bousso will study the interplay between geometry, entropy, gravity, and quantum information, specifically on the quantum-focusing conjecture and the quantum null-energy condition, new area theorems and the cosmological second law, and asymptotic symmetries in relation to the information problem. Professor Horava will study non-relativistic quantum field theory and quantum gravity and their applications to the puzzles of naturalness in particle phenomenology and cosmology, as well as the connection to the Causal Dynamical Triangulations approach to quantizing gravity. He also intends to apply methods of non-equilibrium field theory to string and M-theory.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.