arXiv subjects

Etera R. Livine

Publications and source records attributed to Etera R. Livine.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

Elementary blocks of Loop Quantum Gravity

We embark on the vast program of integrating the dynamics of Loop Quantum Gravity (LQG). Adopting the strategy of decomposing spin network states into small blocks of (quantum) geometry which can later be glued back together, we focus on the more modest objective of studying the Hamiltonian dynamics on the {\it candy graph}, that is two nodes linked together by an arbitrary number of edges and also having open edges. This elementary setting allows both for curvature to develop around the bulk loops and both non-trivial boundary data and dynamics on the open edges. We study this system at the classical level and leave the detailed of its quantum regime for future investigation. Working on a single loop with two external legs, we show how the LQG Hamiltonian ansatz reduces to a pair of non-linear differential equations, similar to the cubic Schrödinger equation, on the areas carried by the bulk links. We provide analytical solutions to this evolution equation, identifying oscillatory modes (bounded modes) and divergent modes (similar to bouncing cosmological trajectories). This provides an explicit template for future investigations of LQG dynamics on more sophisticated spin network architecture built as arrays of candy graphs.

gr-qc↗

arXiv2026

Les Houches lectures on Spinfoam Path Integrals

In these lecture notes for the Les Houches School on Loop Quantum Gravity 2025, which took place in September 2025, we give a pedagogical review of the basics of the spinfoam framework for a quantum gravity path integral. While spin network states in loop quantum gravity describe the quantum geometry of the 3d space as dynamical networks of entangled quanta of volumes, spinfoams define transition amplitudes for those spin networks using the reformulation of general relativity as an "almost-topological" field theory and tools from quantum BF theory and topological state-sums. The lectures were a short format of three times one hour and a half, only allowing to cover the basics and offer a glimpse of more advanced lines of research. We introduce spin foam path integrals for increasing spacetime dimensions starting with 2d BF theory, then build up to 3d quantum gravity with the Ponzano-Regge state-sum and the Turaev-Viro invariant, and finally the quantization of general relativity in four dimensions.

gr-qc↗

arXiv2025

Effective Dynamics of Spherically Symmetric Static Spacetime

In general relativity, the Einstein equations provide spherically symmetric static spacetimes with dynamics defined as an evolution along the radial coordinate $r$. The geometrical sector becomes a one-dimensional mechanical system, with the Misner-Sharp mass and lapse as canonically conjugate variables, and a vanishing Hamiltonian for pure gravity. Coupling classical or quantum matter fields, or introducing (quantum) corrections to general relativity, then generate a non-vanishing effective Hamiltonian, leading to non-trivial evolutions of the mass and lapse. We illustrate this mechanism through various examples of classical matter fields and identify Hamiltonians describing the effective dynamics of gravity coupled to perfect fluids with linear barotropic equation of state. Finally, we derive effective Hamiltonians that reproduce the gravitational semi-classical dynamics coupled to renormalized quantum matter fields and discuss the conditions for which the singularity at $r=0$ is resolved. In particular, we find a singularity-free black-hole-like solution, stabilized by quantum matter, smoothly transitioning from a bulk with constant negative Ricci scalar to the standard outside Schwarzschild metric. This opens new possibilities for the modeling of both semi-classical corrections and deep quantum effects on the interior structure of self-gravitating compact objects and black holes.

gr-qc↗

arXiv2025

Test-Field vs Physical Quasi-Normal Modes in Scalar-Tensor Theories

In the context of the general effort to model black hole dynamics, and in particular their return-to-equilibrium through quasi-normal modes, it is crucial to understand how much test-field perturbations deviate from physical perturbations in modified gravity scenarios. On the one hand, physical perturbations follow the modified Einstein equations of the considered extension of general relativity. The complexity of those equations can quickly escalate with extra fields and non-linear couplings. On the other hand, test-field perturbations, with negligible back-reaction on the space-time geometry, describe the propagation of both matter fields and spin $s=2$ gravitational waves on the black hole geometry. They are not subject to the intricacies of the modified Einstein equations, and only probe the background spacetime metric. If their physics were to not deviate significantly from physical perturbations, they would be especially useful to investigate predictions from quantum gravity scenarios which lack explicit detailed Einstein equations. Here we focus on a specific modified gravity solution -- BCL black holes in scalar-tensor theories -- for which physical perturbations and related QNM frequencies have already been studied and computed numerically. We compute the test-field QNM frequencies and compare the two QNM spectra. This provides a concrete example of the significant differences arising between test-fields and physical perturbations, and flags unphysical deviations related to the test-field framework.

gr-qc↗

arXiv2025

Geometric Formula for 2d Ising Zeros: Examples & Numerics

A geometric formula for the zeros of the partition function of the inhomogeneous 2d Ising model was recently proposed in terms of the angles of 2d triangulations embedded in the flat 3d space. Here we proceed to an analytical check of this formula on the cubic graph, dual to a double pyramid, and provide a thorough numerical check by generating random 2d planar triangulations. Our method is to generate Delaunay triangulations of the 2-sphere then performing random local rescalings. For every 2d triangulations, we compute the corresponding Ising couplings from the triangle angles and the dihedral angles, and check directly that the Ising partition function vanishes for these couplings (and grows in modulus in their neighborhood). In particular, we lift an ambiguity of the original formula on the sign of the dihedral angles and establish a convention in terms of convexity/concavity. Finally, we extend our numerical analysis to 2d toroidal triangulations and show that the geometric formula does not work and will need to be generalized, as originally expected, in order to accommodate for non-trivial topologies.

math-ph↗

arXiv2025

Spinfoam Models for Quantum Gravity: Overview

In the quest of a physical theory of quantum gravity, spin foam models, or in short spinfoams, propose a well-defined path integral summing over quantized discrete space-time geometries. At the crossroad of topological quantum field theory, dynamical triangulations, Regge calculus, and loop quantum gravity, this framework provides a non-perturbative and background independent quantization of general relativity. It defines transition amplitudes between quantum states of geometry, and gives a precise picture of the Planck scale geometry with quantized areas and volumes. Gravity in three space-time dimensions is exactly quantized in terms of the Ponzano-Regge state-sum and Turaev-Viro topological invariants. In four space-time dimensions, gravity is formulated as a topological theory, of the BF type, with extra constraints, and hence quantized as a topological state-sum filled with defects. This leads to the Engle-Pereira-Rovelli-Livine (EPRL) spinfoam model, that can be used for explicit quantum gravity computations, for example for resolving the Big Bang singularity by a bounce or in black-to-white hole transition probability amplitudes.

gr-qc↗

arXiv2024

Matter coupled to 3d Quantum Gravity: One-loop Unitarity

We expect quantum field theories for matter to acquire intricate corrections due to their coupling to quantum fluctuations of the gravitational field. This can be precisely worked out in 3d quantum gravity: after integrating out quantum gravity, matter fields are effectively described as noncommutative quantum field theories, with quantum-deformed Lorentz symmetries. An open question remains: Are such theories unitary or not? On the one hand, since these are effective field theories obtained after integrating out high energy degrees of freedom, we may expect the loss of unitarity. On the other hand, as rigorously defined field theories built with Lorentz symmetries and standing on their own, we naturally expect the conservation of unitarity. In an effort to settle this issue, we explicitly check unitarity for a scalar field at one-loop level in both Euclidean and Lorentzian space-time signatures. We find that unitarity requires adding an extra-term to the propagator of the noncommutative theory, corresponding to a massless mode and given by a representation with vanishing Plancherel measure, thus usually ignored in spinfoam path integrals for quantum gravity. This indicates that the inclusion of matter in spinfoam models, and more generally in quantum gravity, might be more subtle than previously thought.

hep-th↗

arXiv2024

2d Ising Critical Couplings from Quantum Gravity

Using an exact holographic duality formula between the inhomogeneous 2d Ising model and 3d quantum gravity, we provide a formula for "real" zeroes of the 2d Ising partition function on finite trivalent graphs in terms of the geometry of a 2d triangulation embedded in the three-dimensional Euclidean space. The complex phase of those zeroes is given by the dihedral angles of the triangulation, which reflect its extrinsic curvature within the ambient 3d space, while the modulus is given by the angles within the 2d triangles, thus encoding the intrinsic geometry of the triangulation. Our formula can not cover the whole set of Ising zeroes, but we conjecture that a suitable complexification of these "real" zeroes would provide a more thorough formula. Nevertheless, in the thermodynamic limit, in the case of flat planar 2d triangulations, our Ising zeros' formula gives the critical couplings for isoradial graphs, confirming its generality. Finally, the formula naturally extends to graphs with arbitrary valence in terms of geometry of circle patterns embedded in 3d space. This approach shows an intricate, but precise, new relation between statistical mechanics and quantum geometry.

hep-th↗

arXiv2024

Scalar Quasi-Normal Modes of a Loop Quantum Black Hole

We compute the Quasi-Normal Mode (QNM) frequencies for scalar perturbations for modified Schwarzschild black holes in Loop Quantum Gravity. We study the singularity-free polymerized metric characterised by two parameters encoding loop quantum effects: the minimal area gap $a_0$ and the polymeric deformation parameter $P$. We perform numerical computations using Leaver's continued fraction method and compare our results to other semi-analytical methods and existing literature. We study the effects on the QNM spectrum of variation of both deformation parameters and systematically compare to the standard Schwarzschild case. In particular we find that the scalar fundamental mode is modified from the third decimal for values of $P$ in accordance with the most recent astrophysical constraints. We also show that qualitative differences arise for highly damped modes: on the one hand, a new crossing of the imaginary axis occurs for high values of $a_0$ and, on the other hand, increasing $P$ produces a positive shift of the real part and an increase of the spacing in imaginary part between modes.

gr-qc↗

arXiv2023

Schrödinger Symmetry in Gravitational Mini-Superspaces

We prove that the simplest gravitational symmetry reduced models describing cosmology and black holes mechanics are invariant under the Schrödinger group. We consider the flat FRW cosmology filled with a massless scalar field and the Schwarzschild black hole mechanics, construct their conserved charges using the Eisenhart-Duval (ED) lift method and show that they form a Schrödinger algebra. Our method illustrates how the ED lift and the more standard approach analyzing the geometry of the field space are complementarity in revealing different set of symmetries of these systems. We further identify an infinite-dimensional symmetry for those two models, generated by conserved charges organized in two copies of a Witt algebra. These extended charge algebras provide a new algebraic characterization of these homogeneous gravitational sectors. They guide the path to their quantization and open the road to non-linear extensions of quantum cosmology and quantum black holes models in terms of hydrodynamic equations in field space.

gr-qc↗

arXiv2023

Schrödinger symmetry of Schwarzschild-(A)dS black hole mechanics

We show that the dynamics of Schwarzschild-(A)dS black holes admits a symmetry under the 2d Schrödinger group, whatever the sign or value of the cosmological constant. This is achieved by reformulating the spherically-symmetric reduction of general relativity as a 2d mechanical system with a non-trivial potential controlled by the cosmological constant, and explicitly identifying the conserved charges for black hole mechanics. We expect the Schrödinger symmetry to drive the dynamics of quantum Schwarzschild-(A)dS black holes. This suggests that Schrödinger-preserving non-linear deformations (of the Gross-Piteavskii type) should capture universal quantum gravity corrections to the black hole geometry. Such scenario could be realized in condensed matter analogue models.

gr-qc↗

arXiv2023

Quantizing the Quantum Uncertainty

The spread of the wave-function, or quantum uncertainty, is a key notion in quantum mechanics. At leading order, it is characterized by the quadratic moments of the position and momentum operators. These evolve and fluctuate independently from the position and momentum expectation values. They are extra degrees of quantum mechanics compared to classical mechanics, and encode the shape of wave-packets. Following the logic that quantum mechanics must be lifted to quantum field theory, we discuss the quantization of the quantum uncertainty as an operator acting on wave-functions over field space and derive its discrete spectrum, inherited from the $\textrm{sl}_{2}$ Lie algebra formed by the operators $\hat{x}^{2}$, $\hat{p}^{2}$ and $\widehat{xp}$. We further show how this spectrum appears in the value of the coupling of the effective conformal potential driving the evolution of extended Gaussian wave-packets according to Schrödinger equation, with the quantum uncertainty playing the same role as an effective intrinsic angular momentum. We conclude with an open question: is it possible to see experimental signatures of the quantization of the quantum uncertainty in non-relativistic physics, which would signal the departure from quantum mechanics to a QFT regime?

quant-ph↗

arXiv2023

Regularized Black Holes from Doubled FLRW Cosmologies

Reduced general relativity for four-dimensional spherically-symmetric stationary space-times, more simply called the black hole mini-superspace, was shown in previous work to admit a symmetry under the three-dimensional Poincaré group ISO(2,1). Such a non-semi-simple symmetry group usually signals that the system is a special case of a more general model admitting a semi-simple Lie group symmetry. We explore here possible modifications of the Hamiltonian constraint of the mini-superspace. We identify in particular a continuous deformation of the dynamics that lifts the degeneracy of the Poincaré group and leads to a SO(3,1) or SO(2,2) symmetry. This deformation is not related to the cosmological constant. We show that the deformed dynamics can be represented as the superposition of two non-interacting homogeneous FRW cosmologies, with flat slices filled with perfect fluid. The resulting modified black hole metrics are found to be non-singular.

gr-qc↗

arXiv2023

Evolution of the wave-function's shape in a time-dependent harmonic potential

An effective operational approach to quantum mechanics is to focus on the evolution of wave-packets, for which the wave-function can be seen in the semi-classical regime as representing a classical motion dressed with extra degrees of freedom describing the shape of the wave-packet and its fluctuations. These quantum dressing are independent degrees of freedom, mathematically encoded in the higher moments of the wave-function. We review how to extract the effective dynamics for Gaussian wave-packets evolving according to the Schrodinger equation with time-dependent potential in a 1+1-dimensional spacetime, and derive the equations of motion for the quadratic uncertainty. We then show how to integrate the evolution of all the higher moments for a general wave-function in a time-dependent harmonic potential.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2023

Quantum Uncertainty as an Intrinsic Clock

In quantum mechanics, a classical particle is raised to a wave-function, thereby acquiring many more degrees of freedom. For instance, in the semi-classical regime, while the position and momentum expectation values follow the classical trajectory, the uncertainty of a wave-packet can evolve and beat independently. We use this insight to revisit the dynamics of a 1d particle in a time-dependent harmonic well. One can solve it by considering time reparameterizations and the Virasoro group action to map the system to the harmonic oscillator with constant frequency. We prove that identifying such a simplifying time variable is naturally solved by quantizing the system and looking at the evolution of the width of a Gaussian wave-packet. We further show that the Ermakov-Lewis invariant for the classical evolution in a time-dependent harmonic potential is actually the quantum uncertainty of a Gaussian wave-packet. This naturally extends the classical Ermakov-Lewis invariant to a constant of motion for quantum systems following Schrodinger equation. We conclude with a discussion of potential applications to quantum gravity and quantum cosmology.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2023

Loop Quantum Gravity and Quantum Information

We summarize recent developments at the interface of quantum gravity and quantum information, and discuss applications to the quantum geometry of space in loop quantum gravity. In particular, we describe the notions of link entanglement, intertwiner entanglement, and boundary spin entanglement in a spin-network state. We discuss how these notions encode the gluing of quanta of space and their relevance for the reconstruction of a quantum geometry from a network of entanglement structures. We then focus on the geometric entanglement entropy of spin-network states at fixed spins, treated as a many-body system of quantum polyhedra, and discuss the hierarchy of volume-law, area-law and zero-law states. Using information theoretic bounds on the uncertainty of geometric observables and on their correlations, we identify area-law states as the corner of the Hilbert space that encodes a semiclassical geometry, and the geometric entanglement entropy as a probe of semiclassicality.

gr-qc↗

arXiv2022

3D Quantum Gravity from Holomorphic Blocks

Three-dimensional gravity is a topological field theory, which can be quantized as the Ponzano-Regge state-sum model built from the $\{3nj\}$-symbols of the recoupling of the $\SU(2)$ representations, in which spins are interpreted as quantized edge lengths in Planck units. It describes the flat spacetime as gluing of three-dimensional cells with a fixed boundary metric encoding length scale. In this paper, we revisit the Ponzano-Regge model formulated in terms of spinors and rewrite the quantum geometry of 3D cells with holomorphic recoupling symbols. These symbols, known as Schwinger's generating function for the $\{6j\}$-symbols, are simply the squared inverse of the partition function of the 2D Ising model living on the boundary of the 3D cells. They can furthermore be interpreted, in their critical regime, as scale-invariant basic elements of geometry. We show how to glue them together into a discrete topological quantum field theory. This reformulation of the path integral for 3D quantum gravity, with a rich pole structure of the elementary building blocks, opens a new door toward the study of phase transitions and continuum limits in 3D quantum gravity, and offers a new twist on the construction of a duality between 3D quantum gravity and a 2d conformal theory.

hep-th↗

arXiv2022

Dynamical symmetries of homogeneous minisuperspace models

We investigate the phase space symmetries and conserved charges of homogeneous gravitational minisuperspaces. These (0+1)-dimensional reductions of general relativity are defined by spacetime metrics in which the dynamical variables depend only on a time coordinate, and are formulated as mechanical systems with a non-trivial field space metric (or supermetric) and effective potential. We show how to extract conserved charges for those minisuperspaces from the homothetic Killing vectors of the field space metric. In the case of two-dimensional field spaces, we exhibit a universal 8-dimensional symmetry algebra given by the semi-direct sum of $\mathfrak{sl}(2,\mathbb{R})\oplus\mathbb{R}$ with the two-dimensional Heisenberg algebra $\mathfrak{h}_2\simeq\mathbb{R}^4$. We apply this to the systematic study of the Bianchi models for homogeneous cosmology. This extends previous results on the $\mathfrak{sl}(2,\mathbb{R})$ algebra for Friedmann-Lemaitre-Robertson-Walker cosmology, and the Poincaré symmetry for Kantowski-Sachs metrics describing the black hole interior. The presence of this rich symmetry structure already in minisuperspace models opens new doors towards quantization and the study of solution generating mechanisms.

gr-qc↗