arXiv subjects

Antony J. Speranza

Publications and source records attributed to Antony J. Speranza.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2025

An intrinsic cosmological observer

There has been much recent interest in the necessity of an observer degree of freedom in the description of local algebras in semiclassical gravity. In this work, we describe an example where the observer can be constructed intrinsically from the quantum fields. This construction involves the slow-roll inflation example recently analyzed by Chen and Penington, in which the gauge-invariant gravitational algebra arises from marginalizing over modular flow in a de Sitter static patch. We relate this procedure to the Connes-Takesaki theory of the flow of weights for type III von Neumann algebras, and further show that the resulting gravitational algebra can naturally be presented as a crossed product. This leads to a decomposition of the gravitational algebra into quantum field and observer degrees of freedom, with different choices of observer being related to changes in a quantum reference frame for the algebra. We also connect this example to other constructions of type II algebras in semiclassical gravity, and argue they all share the feature of being the result of gauging modular flow. The arguments in this work involve various properties of automorphism groups of hyperfinite factors, and so in an appendix we review the structure of these groups, which may be of independent interest for further investigations into von Neumann algebras in quantum gravity.

hep-th↗

arXiv2025

Holographic observers for time-band algebras

We study the algebra of observables in a time band on the boundary of anti-de Sitter space in a theory of quantum gravity. Strictly speaking this algebra does not have a commutant because products of operators within the time band give rise to operators outside the time band. However, we show that in a state where the bulk contains a macroscopic observer, it is possible to define a coarse-grained version of this algebra with a non-trivial commutant, and a resolution limited by the observer's characteristics. This algebra acts on a little Hilbert space that describes excitations about the observer's state and time-translated versions of this state. Our construction requires a choice of dressing that determines how elements of the algebra transform under the Hamiltonian. At leading order in gravitational perturbation theory, and with a specific choice of dressing, our construction reduces to the modular crossed-product described previously in the literature. We also prove a theorem showing that this is the only crossed product of a type III$_1$ algebra resulting in an algebra with a trace. This trace can be used to define entropy differences between states in the little Hilbert space that are insensitive to the properties of the observer. We discuss some technical challenges in extending this construction to higher orders in perturbation theory. Lastly, we review the construction of interior operators in the eternal black hole and show that they can be written as elements of a crossed product algebra.

hep-th↗

arXiv2024

Gravitational algebras and the generalized second law

We derive the generalized second law (GSL) for arbitrary cuts of Killing horizons from the perspective of crossed-product gravitational algebras, making use of a recent proposal by one of us for the construction of local gravitational algebras. This construction relies on the existence of a state whose modular flow is geometric on the horizon. In both free and interacting quantum field theories, such states are guaranteed to exist by the properties of half-sided translations on the horizon. Using geometric identities derived from the canonical analysis of general relativity on null surfaces, we show that the crossed product entropy agrees with the generalized entropy of the horizon cut in a semiclassical limit, and further reproduce Wall's result relating the GSL to monotonicity of relative entropy of the quantum field algebras. We also give a novel generalization of the GSL for interacting theories in asymptotically flat spacetimes involving the concept of an algebra at infinity for a half-sided translation, which accounts for triviality of the algebra of fields smeared only on the horizon. Going beyond the semiclassical limit, we compute subleading corrections to the crossed product entropy, but are unable to determine if the GSL continues to hold after accounting for these. We speculate that an improved GSL could follow from a hidden subalgebra structure of the crossed products, assuming the existence of an operator-valued weight between horizon cut algebras.

hep-th↗

arXiv2023

A covariant regulator for entanglement entropy: proofs of the Bekenstein bound and QNEC

While von Neumann entropies for subregions in quantum field theory universally contain ultraviolet divergences, differences between von Neumann entropies are finite and well-defined in many physically relevant scenarios. We demonstrate that such a notion of entropy differences can be rigorously defined in quantum field theory in a general curved spacetime by introducing a novel, covariant regulator for the entropy based on the modular crossed product. This regulator associates a type II von Neumann algebra to each spacetime subregion, resulting in well-defined renormalized entropies. This prescription reproduces formulas for entropy differences that coincide with heuristic formulas widely used in the literature, and we prove that it satisfies desirable properties such as unitary invariance and concavity. As an application, we provide proofs of the Bekenstein bound and the quantum null energy condition, formulated directly in terms of vacuum-subtracted von Neumann entropies.

hep-th↗

arXiv2023

Matrix Quantization of Gravitational Edge Modes

Gravitational subsystems with boundaries carry the action of an infinite-dimensional symmetry algebra, with potentially profound implications for the quantum theory of gravity. We initiate an investigation into the quantization of this corner symmetry algebra for the phase space of gravity localized to a region bounded by a 2-dimensional sphere. Starting with the observation that the algebra $\mathfrak{sdiff}(S^2)$ of area-preserving diffeomorphisms of the 2-sphere admits a deformation to the finite-dimensional algebra $\mathfrak{su}(N)$, we derive novel finite-$N$ deformations for two important subalgebras of the gravitational corner symmetry algebra. Specifically, we find that the area-preserving hydrodynamical algebra $\mathfrak{sdiff}(S^2)\oplus_{\mathcal{L}}\mathbb{R}^{S^2}$ arises as the large-$N$ limit of $\mathfrak{sl}(N,\mathbb C)\oplus\mathbb{R}$ and that the full area-preserving corner symmetry algebra $\mathfrak{sdiff}(S^2)\oplus_{\mathcal{L}}\mathfrak{sl}(2,\mathbb{R})^{S^2}$ is the large-$N$ limit of the pseudo-unitary group $\mathfrak{su}(N,N)$. We find matching conditions for the Casimir elements of the deformed and continuum algebras and show how these determine the value of the deformation parameter $N$ as well as the representation of the deformed algebra associated with a quantization of the local gravitational phase space. Additionally, we present a number of novel results related to the various algebras appearing, including a detailed analysis of the asymptotic expansion of the $\mathfrak{su}(N)$ structure constants, as well as an explicit computation of the full $\mathfrak{diff}(S^2)$ structure constants in the spherical harmonic basis. A consequence of our work is the definition of an area operator which is compatible with the deformation of the area-preserving corner symmetry at finite $N$.

hep-th↗

arXiv2022

Complexity Equals Anything II

We expand on our results in arXiv:2111.02429 to present a broad new class of gravitational observables in asymptotically Anti-de Sitter space living on general codimension-zero regions of the bulk spacetime. By taking distinct limits, these observables can reduce to well-studied holographic complexity proposals, e.g., the volume of the maximal slice and the action or spacetime volume of the Wheeler-DeWitt patch. As with the codimension-one family found in arXiv:2111.02429, these new observables display two key universal features for the thermofield double state: they grow linearly in time at late times and reproduce the switchback effect. Hence we argue that any member of this new class of observables is an equally viable candidate as a gravitational dual of complexity. Moreover, using the Peierls construction, we show that variations of the codimension-zero and codimension-one observables are encoded in the gravitational symplectic form on the semi-classical phase-space, which can then be mapped to the CFT.

hep-th↗

arXiv2022

Does Complexity Equal Anything?

We present a new infinite class of gravitational observables in asymptotically Anti-de Sitter space living on codimension-one slices of the geometry, the most famous of which is the volume of the maximal slice. We show that these observables display universal features for the thermofield-double state: they grow linearly in time at late times and reproduce the switch-back effect in shock wave geometries. We argue that any member of this class of observables is an equally viable candidate as the extremal volume for a gravitational dual of complexity.

hep-th↗

arXiv2022

Ambiguity resolution for integrable gravitational charges

Recently, Ciambelli, Leigh, and Pai (CLP) [arXiv:2111.13181] have shown that nonzero charges integrating Hamilton's equation can be defined for all diffeomorphisms acting near the boundary of a subregion in a gravitational theory. This is done by extending the phase space to include a set of embedding fields that parameterize the location of the boundary. Because their construction differs from previous works on extended phase spaces by a covariant phase space ambiguity, the question arises as to whether the resulting charges are unambiguously defined. Here, we demonstrate that ambiguity-free charges can be obtained by appealing to the variational principle for the subregion, following recent developments on dealing with boundaries in the covariant phase space. Resolving the ambiguity produces corrections to the diffeomorphism charges, and also generates additional obstructions to integrability of Hamilton's equation. We emphasize the fact that the CLP extended phase space produces nonzero diffeomorphism charges distinguishes it from previous constructions in which diffeomorphisms are pure gauge, since the embedding fields can always be eliminated from the latter by a choice of unitary gauge. Finally, we show that Wald-Zoupas charges, with their characteristic obstruction to integrability, are associated with a modified transformation in the extended phase space, clarifying the reason behind integrability of Hamilton's equation for standard diffeomorphisms.

hep-th↗

arXiv2022

Brown-York charges at null boundaries

The Brown-York stress tensor provides a means for defining quasilocal gravitational charges in subregions bounded by a timelike hypersurface. We consider the generalization of this stress tensor to null hypersurfaces. Such a stress tensor can be derived from the on-shell subregion action of general relativity associated with a Dirichlet variational principle, which fixes an induced Carroll structure on the null boundary. The formula for the mixed-index tensor $T{}^i{}_j$ takes a remarkably simple form that is manifestly independent of the choice of auxiliary null vector at the null surface, and we compare this expression to previous proposals for null Brown-York stress tensors. The stress tensor we obtain satisfies a covariant conservation equation with respect to any connection induced from a rigging vector at the hypersurface, as a result of the null constraint equations. For transformations that act covariantly on the boundary structures, the Brown-York charges coincide with canonical charges constructed from a version of the Wald-Zoupas procedure. For anomalous transformations, the charges differ by an intrinsic functional of the boundary geometry, which we explicity verify for a set of symmetries associated with finite null hypersurfaces. Applications of the null Brown-York stress tensor to symmetries of asymptotically flat spacetimes and celestial holography are discussed.

hep-th↗

arXiv2022

A general framework for gravitational charges and holographic renormalization

We develop a general framework for constructing charges associated with diffeomorphisms in gravitational theories using covariant phase space techniques. This framework encompasses both localized charges associated with spacetime subregions, as well as global conserved charges of the full spacetime. Expressions for the charges include contributions from the boundary and corner terms in the subregion action, and are rendered unambiguous by appealing to the variational principle for the subregion, which selects a preferred form of the symplectic flux through the boundaries. The Poisson brackets of the charges on the subregion phase space are shown to reproduce the bracket of Barnich and Troessaert for open subsystems, thereby giving a novel derivation of this bracket from first principles. In the context of asymptotic boundaries, we show that the procedure of holographic renormalization can be always applied to obtain finite charges and fluxes once suitable counterterms have been found to ensure a finite action. This enables the study of larger asymptotic symmetry groups by loosening the boundary conditions imposed at infinity. We further present an algorithm for explicitly computing the counterterms that renormalize the action and symplectic potential, and, as an application of our framework, demonstrate that it reproduces known expressions for the charges of the generalized Bondi-Metzner-Sachs algebra.

gr-qc↗

arXiv2021

Area deficits and the Bel-Robinson tensor

The first law of causal diamonds relates the area deficit of a small ball relative to flat space to the matter energy density it contains. At second order in the Riemann normal coordinate expansion, this energy density should receive contributions from the gravitational field itself. In this work, we study the second-order area deficit of the ball in the absence of matter and analyze its relation to possible notions of gravitational energy. In the small ball limit, any proposed gravitational energy functional should evaluate to the Bel-Robinson energy density $W$ in vacuum spacetimes. A direct calculation of the area deficit reveals a result that is not simply proportional to $W$. We discuss how the deviation from $W$ is related to ambiguities in defining the shape of the ball in curved space, and provide several proposals for fixing these shape ambiguities.

gr-qc↗

arXiv2021

Anomalies in gravitational charge algebras of null boundaries and black hole entropy

We revisit the covariant phase space formalism applied to gravitational theories with null boundaries, utilizing the most general boundary conditions consistent with a fixed null normal. To fix the ambiguity inherent in the Wald-Zoupas definition of quasilocal charges, we propose a new principle, based on holographic reasoning, that the flux be of Dirichlet form. This also produces an expression for the analog of the Brown-York stress tensor on the null surface. Defining the algebra of charges using the Barnich-Troessaert bracket for open subsystems, we give a general formula for the central -- or more generally, abelian -- extensions that appear in terms of the anomalous transformation of the boundary term in the gravitational action. This anomaly arises from having fixed a frame for the null normal, and we draw parallels between it and the holographic Weyl anomaly that occurs in AdS/CFT. As an application of this formalism, we analyze the near-horizon Virasoro symmetry considered by Haco, Hawking, Perry, and Strominger, and perform a systematic derivation of the fluxes and central charges. Applying the Cardy formula to the result yields an entropy that is twice the Bekenstein-Hawking entropy of the horizon. Motivated by the extended Hilbert space construction, we interpret this in terms of a pair of entangled CFTs associated with edge modes on either side of the bifurcation surface.

hep-th↗

arXiv2020

Gravitational Edge Modes, Coadjoint Orbits, and Hydrodynamics

The phase space of general relativity in a finite subregion is characterized by edge modes localized at the codimension-2 boundary, transforming under an infinite-dimensional group of symmetries. The quantization of this symmetry algebra is conjectured to be an important aspect of quantum gravity. As a step towards quantization, we derive a complete classification of the positive-area coadjoint orbits of this group for boundaries that are topologically a 2-sphere. This classification parallels Wigner's famous classification of representations of the Poincaré group since both groups have the structure of a semidirect product. We find that the total area is a Casimir of the algebra, analogous to mass in the Poincaré group. A further infinite family of Casimirs can be constructed from the curvature of the normal bundle of the boundary surface. These arise as invariants of the little group, which is the group of area-preserving diffeomorphisms, and are the analogues of spin. Additionally, we show that the symmetry group of hydrodynamics appears as a reduction of the corner symmetries of general relativity. Coadjoint orbits of both groups are classified by the same set of invariants, and, in the case of the hydrodynamical group, the invariants are interpreted as the generalized enstrophies of the fluid.

hep-th↗

arXiv2020

Virasoro hair and entropy for axisymmetric Killing horizons

We show that the gravitational phase space for the near-horizon region of a bifurcate, axisymmetric Killing horizon in any dimension admits a 2D conformal symmetry algebra with central charges proportional to the area. This extends the construction of [Haco et. al., JHEP 12, 098 (2018)] to generic Killing horizons appearing in solutions of Einstein's equations, and motivates a holographic description in terms of a 2D conformal field theory. The Cardy entropy in such a field theory agrees with the Bekenstein-Hawking entropy of the horizon, suggesting a microscopic interpretation.

hep-th↗

arXiv2019

Cosmic footballs from superrotations

Superrotations arise from singular vector fields on the celestial sphere in asymptotically flat space, and their finite integrated versions have been argued by Strominger and Zhiboedov to insert cosmic strings into the spacetime. In this work, we argue for an alternative definition of the action of superrotations on Minkowski space that avoids introducing any defects. This involves realizing the finite superrotation not as a diffeomorphism between spaces, but as a mapping of Minkowski space to itself that may be multivalued or non-surjective. This eliminates any defects in the bulk spacetime at the expense of allowing for defects in the boundary celestial sphere metric. We further explore the geometry of the spatial surfaces in the superrotated spaces, and note that they intersect null infinity at the singularity of the superrotation, causing a breakdown in the large $r$ asymptotic expansion there. To determine how these surfaces embed into Minkowski space, a derivation of the finite superrotation transformation is presented in both Bondi and Newman-Unti gauges. The latter is particularly interesting, since the superrotations are shown to preserve the hyperbolic slicing of Minkowski space in Newman-Unti gauge, and this gauge also provides a means for extending the geometry beyond the Bondi coordinate patch. We argue that the new interpretation for the action of superrotations on spacetime motivates consideration of a wider class of celestial sphere metrics and asymptotic symmetry groups.

hep-th↗

arXiv2019

Nonlocal multi-trace sources and bulk entanglement in holographic conformal field theories

We consider CFT states defined by adding nonlocal multi-trace sources to the Euclidean path integral defining the vacuum state. For holographic theories, we argue that these states correspond to states in the gravitational theory with a good semiclassical description but with a more general structure of bulk entanglement than states defined from single-trace sources. We show that at leading order in large N, the entanglement entropies for any such state are precisely the same as those of another state defined by appropriate single-trace effective sources; thus, if the leading order entanglement entropies are geometrical for the single-trace states of a CFT, they are geometrical for all the multi-trace states as well. Next, we consider the perturbative calculation of 1/N corrections to the CFT entanglement entropies, demonstrating that these show qualitatively different features, including non-analyticity in the sources and/or divergences in the naive perturbative expansion. These features are consistent with the expectation that the 1/N corrections include contributions from bulk entanglement on the gravity side. Finally, we investigate the dynamical constraints on the bulk geometry and the quantum state of the bulk fields which must be satisfied so that the entropies can be reproduced via the quantum-corrected Ryu-Takayanagi formula.

hep-th↗

arXiv2019

Geometrical tools for embedding fields, submanifolds, and foliations

Embedding fields provide a way of coupling a background structure to a theory while preserving diffeomorphism-invariance. Examples of such background structures include embedded submanifolds, such as branes; boundaries of local subregions, such as the Ryu-Takayanagi surface in holography; and foliations, which appear in fluid dynamics and force-free electrodynamics. This work presents a systematic framework for computing geometric properties of these background structures in the embedding field description. An overview of the local geometric quantities associated with a foliation is given, including a review of the Gauss, Codazzi, and Ricci-Voss equations, which relate the geometry of the foliation to the ambient curvature. Generalizations of these equations for curvature in the nonintegrable normal directions are derived. Particular care is given to the question of which objects are well-defined for single submanifolds, and which depend on the structure of the foliation away from a submanifold. Variational formulas are provided for the geometric quantities, which involve contributions both from the variation of the embedding map as well as variations of the ambient metric. As an application of these variational formulas, a derivation is given of the Jacobi equation, describing perturbations of extremal area surfaces of arbitrary codimension. The embedding field formalism is also applied to the problem of classifying boundary conditions for general relativity in a finite subregion that lead to integrable Hamiltonians. The framework developed in this paper will provide a useful set of tools for future analyses of brane dynamics, fluid mechanics, and edge modes for finite subregions of diffeomorphism-invariant theories.

gr-qc↗

arXiv2018

Investigations on entanglement entropy in gravity

Entanglement entropy first arose from attempts to understand the entropy of black holes, and is believed to play a crucial role in a complete description of quantum gravity. This thesis explores some proposed connections between entanglement entropy and the geometry of spacetime. One such connection is the ability to derive gravitational field equations from entanglement identities. I will discuss a specific derivation of the Einstein equation from an equilibrium condition satisfied by entanglement entropy, and explore a subtlety in the construction when the matter fields are not conformally invariant. As a further generalization, I extend the argument to include higher curvature theories of gravity, whose consideration is necessitated by the presence of subleading divergences in the entanglement entropy beyond the area law. A deeper issue in this construction, as well as in more general considerations identifying black hole entropy with entanglement entropy, is that the entropy is ambiguous for gauge fields and gravitons. The ambiguity stems from how one handles edge modes at the entangling surface, which parameterize the gauge transformations that are broken by the presence of the boundary. The final part of this thesis is devoted to identifying the edge modes in arbitrary diffeomorphism-invariant theories. Edge modes are conjectured to provide a statistical description of the black hole entropy, and this work takes some initial steps toward checking this conjecture in higher curvature theories.

hep-th↗