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A. Ibort

Publications and source records attributed to A. Ibort.

47 records · Page 3Linked to original sources
arXiv2011

Quantum Geons and Noncommutative Spacetimes

Physical considerations strongly indicate that spacetime at Planck scales is noncommutative. A popular model for such a spacetime is the Moyal plane. The Poincarè group algebra acts on it with a Drinfel'd-twisted coproduct. But the latter is not appropriate for more complicated spacetimes such as those containing the Friedman-Sorkin (topological) geons. They have rich diffeomorphism groups and in particular mapping class groups, so that the statistics groups for N identical geons is strikingly different from the permutation group $S_N$. We generalise the Drinfel'd twist to (essentially) generic groups including to finite and discrete ones and use it to modify the commutative spacetime algebras of geons as well to noncommutative algebras. The latter support twisted actions of diffeos of geon spacetimes and associated twisted statistics. The notion of covariant fields for geons is formulated and their twisted versions are constructed from their untwisted versions. Non-associative spacetime algebras arise naturally in our analysis. Physical consequences, such as the violation of Pauli principle, seem to be the outcomes of such nonassociativity. The richness of the statistics groups of identical geons comes from the nontrivial fundamental groups of their spatial slices. As discussed long ago, extended objects like rings and D-branes also have similar rich fundamental groups. This work is recalled and its relevance to the present quantum geon context is pointed out.

hep-th↗
arXiv2010

Covariant Quantum Fields on Noncommutative Spacetimes

A spinless covariant field $ϕ$ on Minkowski spacetime $\M^{d+1}$ obeys the relation $U(a,Λ)ϕ(x)U(a,Λ)^{-1}=ϕ(Λx+a)$ where $(a,Λ)$ is an element of the Poincaré group $\Pg$ and $U:(a,Λ)\to U(a,Λ)$ is its unitary representation on quantum vector states. It expresses the fact that Poincaré transformations are being unitary implemented. It has a classical analogy where field covariance shows that Poincaré transformations are canonically implemented. Covariance is self-reproducing: products of covariant fields are covariant. We recall these properties and use them to formulate the notion of covariant quantum fields on noncommutative spacetimes. In this way all our earlier results on dressing, statistics, etc. for Moyal spacetimes are derived transparently. For the Voros algebra, covariance and the *-operation are in conflict so that there are no covariant Voros fields compatible with *, a result we found earlier. The notion of Drinfel'd twist underlying much of the preceding discussion is extended to discrete abelian and nonabelian groups such as the mapping class groups of topological geons. For twists involving nonabelian groups the emergent spacetimes are nonassociative.

hep-th↗
arXiv2010

On the Tomographic Picture of Quantum Mechanics

We formulate necessary and sufficient conditions for a symplectic tomogram of a quantum state to determine the density state. We establish a connection between the (re)construction by means of symplectic tomograms with the construction by means of Naimark positive-definite functions on the Weyl-Heisenberg group. This connection is used to formulate properties which guarantee that tomographic probabilities describe quantum states in the probability representation of quantum mechanics.

quant-ph↗
arXiv2010

Inequivalence of QFT's on Noncommutative Spacetimes: Moyal versus Wick-Voros

In this paper, we further develop the analysis started in an earlier paper on the inequivalence of certain quantum field theories on noncommutative spacetimes constructed using twisted fields. The issue is of physical importance. Thus it is well known that the commutation relations among spacetime coordinates, which define a noncommutative spacetime, do not constrain the deformation induced on the algebra of functions uniquely. Such deformations are all mathematically equivalent in a very precise sense. Here we show how this freedom at the level of deformations of the algebra of functions can fail on the quantum field theory side. In particular, quantum field theory on the Wick-Voros and Moyal planes are shown to be inequivalent in a few different ways. Thus quantum field theory calculations on these planes will lead to different physics even though the classical theories are equivalent. This result is reminiscent of chiral anomaly in gauge theories and has obvious physical consequences. The construction of quantum field theories on the Wick-Voros plane has new features not encountered for quantum field theories on the Moyal plane. In fact it seems impossible to construct a quantum field theory on the Wick-Voros plane which satisfies all the properties needed of field theories on noncommutative spaces. The Moyal twist seems to have unique features which make it a preferred choice for the construction of a quantum field theory on a noncommutative spacetime.

hep-th↗
arXiv2009

An introduction to the tomographic picture of quantum mechanics

Starting from the famous Pauli problem on the possibility to associate quantum states with probabilities, the formulation of quantum mechanics in which quantum states are described by fair probability distributions (tomograms, i.e. tomographic probabilities) is reviewed in a pedagogical style. The relation between the quantum state description and the classical state description is elucidated. The difference of those sets of tomograms is described by inequalities equivalent to a complete set of uncertainty relations for the quantum domain and to nonnegativity of probability density on phase space in the classical domain. Intersection of such sets is studied. The mathematical mechanism which allows to construct different kinds of tomographic probabilities like symplectic tomograms, spin tomograms, photon number tomograms, etc., is clarified and a connection with abstract Hilbert space properties is established. Superposition rule and uncertainty relations in terms of probabilities as well as quantum basic equation like quantum evolution and energy spectra equations are given in explicit form. A method to check experimentally uncertainty relations is suggested using optical tomograms. Entanglement phenomena and the connection with semigroups acting on simplexes are studied in detail for spin states in the case of two qubits. The star-product formalism is associated with the tomographic probability formulation of quantum mechanics.

quant-ph↗
arXiv2009

Remarks on the star product of functions on finite and compact groups

Using the formalism of quantizers and dequantizers, we show that the characters of irreducible unitary representations of finite and compact groups provide kernels for star products of complex-valued functions of the group elements. Examples of permutation groups of two and three elements, as well as the SU(2) group, are considered. The k-deformed star products of functions on finite and compact groups are presented. The explicit form of the quantizers and dequantizers, and the duality symmetry of the considered star products are discussed.

math-ph↗
arXiv2007

Alternative linear structures for classical and quantum systems

The possibility of deforming the (associative or Lie) product to obtain alternative descriptions for a given classical or quantum system has been considered in many papers. Here we discuss the possibility of obtaining some novel alternative descriptions by changing the linear structure instead. In particular we show how it is possible to construct alternative linear structures on the tangent bundle TQ of some classical configuration space Q that can be considered as "adapted" to the given dynamical system. This fact opens the possibility to use the Weyl scheme to quantize the system in different non equivalent ways, "evading", so to speak, the von Neumann uniqueness theorem.

quant-ph↗
arXiv2006

Path integrals and boundary conditions

The path integral approach to quantum mechanics provides a method of quantization of dynamical systems directly from the Lagrange formalism. In field theory the method presents some advantages over Hamiltonian quantization. The Lagrange formalism preserves relativistic covariance which makes the Feynman method very convenient to achieve the renormalization of field theories both in perturbative and non-perturbative approaches. However, when the systems are confined in bounded domains we shall show that the path integral approach does not describe the most general type of boundary conditions. Highly non-local boundary conditions cannot be described by Feynman's approach. We analyse in this note the origin of this problem in quantum mechanics and its implications for field theory.

quant-ph↗
arXiv2006

Alternative linear structures associated with regular Lagrangians. Weyl quantization and the Von Neumann uniqueness theorem

We discuss how the existence of a regular Lagrangian description on the tangent bundle $TQ$ of some configuration space $Q$ allows for the construction of a linear structure on $TQ$ that can be considered as "adapted" to the given dynamical system. The fact then that many dynamical systems admit alternative Lagrangian descriptions opens the possibility to use the Weyl scheme to quantize the system in different non equivalent ways, "evading", so to speak, the von Neumann uniqueness theorem.

math-ph↗
arXiv2004

Global Theory of Quantum Boundary Conditions and Topology Change

We analyze the global theory of boundary conditions for a constrained quantum system with classical configuration space a compact Riemannian manifold $M$ with regular boundary $Γ=\partial M$. The space $\CM$ of self-adjoint extensions of the covariant Laplacian on $M$ is shown to have interesting geometrical and topological properties which are related to the different topological closures of $M$. In this sense, the change of topology of $M$ is connected with the non-trivial structure of $\CM$. The space $\CM$ itself can be identified with the unitary group $\CU(L^2(Γ,\C^N))$ of the Hilbert space of boundary data $L^2(Γ,\C^N)$. A particularly interesting family of boundary conditions, identified as the set of unitary operators which are singular under the Cayley transform, $\CC_-\cap \CC_+$ (the Cayley manifold), turns out to play a relevant role in topology change phenomena. The singularity of the Cayley transform implies that some energy levels, usually associated with edge states, acquire an infinity energy when by an adiabatic change the boundary condition reaches the Cayley submanifold $\CC_-$. In this sense topological transitions require an infinite amount of quantum energy to occur, although the description of the topological transition in the space $\CM$ is smooth. This fact has relevant implications in string theory for possible scenarios with joint descriptions of open and closed strings. In the particular case of elliptic self--adjoint boundary conditions, the space $\CC_-$ can be identified with a Lagrangian submanifold of the infinite dimensional Grassmannian. The corresponding Cayley manifold $\CC_-$ is dual of the Maslov class of $\CM$.

hep-th↗