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T. P. Shestakova

Publications and source records attributed to T. P. Shestakova.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
arXiv2026

What may come beyond the Wheeler-DeWitt approach?

The goal of this paper is to compare the Wheeler-DeWitt approach, understood in a broad sense, with an alternative one, the so-called extended phase space approach to quantization of gravity. By "the Wheeler-DeWitt approach", I mean not only quantum geometrodynamics formulated by DeWitt in his seminal paper of 1967, but also any approach to quantization of gravity based on the Wheeler-DeWitt equation in some form. Since the Wheeler-DeWitt equation is a direct consequence of the Dirac formalism, its analysis requires examination of the latter and its application to gravity. In particular, I argue that there is a contradiction between canonical quantization and the idea put forward by founders of quantum gravity that, in this theory, all possible spacetime topologies should be taken into account. The path integral approach seems to be more adequate then the canonical approach. However, to derive the Wheeler-DeWitt equation from the path integral, most authors make the assumption about asymptotic states, that again contradicts the supposition of arbitrary spacetime topology. The extended phase space formalism is entirely based on the path integral approach. Note that if one refuses the assumption about asymptotic states, one cannot prove the gauge invariance of the path integral, and the Wheeler-DeWitt equation loses its sense. In the alternative approach, one derives the Schrodinger equation instead. Thus, the extended phase space approach is really beyond the Wheeler-DeWitt approach. The features of this alternative approach are explored with special emphasis on conclusions that cannot be obtained by using the Wheeler-DeWitt quantum geometrodynamics.

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arXiv2025

The Schrödinger equation for a spherically symmetric system, its structure and solutions

The Wheeler - DeWitt geometrodynamics, as the first attempt to develop a quantum theory of gravity, faces certain challenges, including the problem of time and the interpretation of the wave function. In this paper, we present the extended phase space approach to quantization of gravity as an alternative approach to the Wheeler - DeWitt quantum geometrodynamics. For a spacetime with a nontrivial topology, the Wheeler - DeWitt equation loses its sense, but we can derive the Schrödinger equation. Until now the Schrödinger equation was derived for systems with a finite number of degrees of freedom, and we need to generalize the procedure for field models. The simplest field model is a spherically symmetric one. We derive the integro-differential Schrödinger equation for this model, examine its structure, and find its solution.

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arXiv2025

Some features of the extended phase space approach to quantization of gravity

In this paper, I emphasize those features of the extended phase space approach to quantization of gravity that distinguish it among other approaches. First of all, it is the conjecture about non-trivial topology of the Universe which was supported by Wheeler, Hawking and other founders of quantum gravity. However, this conjecture appears to be in contradiction with the assumption about asymptotic states that is used in the path integral quantization of gauge theories. The presence of asymptotic states ensures gauge invariance of the theory, but, in the case of gravity, the states exist only in asymptotically flat spacetimes, that limits possible topologies. Then we have two ways. The first way is to consider only asymptotically flat spacetimes. In fact, it reduces quantum gravity to quantum field theory on a given background. The second way is to reject the assumption about asymptotic states. In the case of non-trivial topology, one cannot cover the whole spacetime with the only coordinate system. One has to introduce various reference frames fixed by different gauge conditions in different spacetime regions. The Hamiltonian describing a gravitating system will depend on gauge conditions. It leads to the conclusion that unitary evolution may be broken down. This conclusion cannot be obtained in approaches based on the Wheeler - DeWitt equation or making use of the assumption about asymptotic states. The assessment of this conclusion is given.

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arXiv2023

The semiclassical limit of quantum gravity and the problem of time

The question about the appearance of time in the semiclassical limit of quantum gravity continues to be discussed in the literature. It is believed that a temporal Schrodinger equation for matter fields on the background of a classical gravitational field must be true. To obtain this equation, the Born - Oppenheimer approximation for gravity is used. However, the origin of time in this equation is different in works of various authors. For example, in the papers of Kiefer and his collaborators, time is a parameter along a classical trajectory of gravitational field; in the works of Montani and his collaborators the origin of time is introducing the Kuchar - Torre reference fluid; in the extended phase space approach the origin of time is the consequence of existing of the observer in a fixed reference frame. We discuss and compare these approaches. To make the calculations transparent, we illustrate them with a model of a closed isotropic universe. In each approach, one obtains some Schrodinger equation for matter fields with quantum gravitational corrections, but the form of the equation and the corrections depend on additional assumptions which are rather arbitrary. None of the approaches can explain how time had appeared in the Early Universe, since it is supposed that classical gravity and, therefore, classical spacetime had already come into being.

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arXiv2023

On the appearance of time in the classical limit of quantum gravity

A possible solution of the problem of time in the Wheeler - DeWitt quantum geometrodynamics is that time appears in semiclassical limit. Following this line of thinking, one can come to the Schrodinger equation for matter fields in curved spacetime with quantum-gravitational corrections. In the present paper, we study the semiclassical limit in the case of a closed isotropic model with a scalar field decomposed into modes. We analyse calculations made within frameworks of three approaches. The first approach was proposed by Kiefer and Singh. Since the Wheeler - DeWitt equation does not contain a time derivative, it is constructed by means of a special mathematical procedure, time variable being a parameter along a classical trajectory of gravitational field. The second method was suggested in the paper of Maniccia and Montani who introduced the Kuchar - Torre reference fluid as an origin of time. And the third is the extended phase space approach to quantization of gravity. In this approach, the temporal Schrodinger equation is argued to be more fundamental than the Wheeler - DeWitt equation, and there is no problem of time. The origin of time is fixing of a reference frame of some observer, who can register macroscopic consequences of quantum gravitational phenomena in the Very Early Universe. To go to the semiclassical limit, the Born - Oppenheimer approximation for gravity is used. In each of the approaches, in the order ${\cal O}(1/M)$, a temporal Schrodinger equation for matter fields in curved spacetime with quantum gravitational corrections is obtained. However, equations and corrections are different in various approaches, and the results depend on additional assumptions made within the scopes of these approaches.

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arXiv2022

The birth of the Universe as a result of the change of the metric signature

In this paper, I discuss the idea that the birth of our Universe may be a result of a quantum transition from a physical continuum with the Euclidean signature to a Lorentzian spacetime. A similar idea was expressed by Andrei D. Sakharov. At the classical level, the idea was studied by George F. R. Ellis and his collaborators, who explored if solutions to the classical Einstein equation exist which admit a change of metric signature. The present paper aims at examining possible realizations of this idea at the level of quantum gravity, in the framework of the Wheeler - DeWitt theory and in the extended phase space approach to quantization of gravity. I intend to answer the questions: Does the Hartle - Hawking wave function imply such a realization? How can this idea be realized in the extended phase space approach to quantum gravity, where the change of signature is described by imposing special conditions on $g_{00}$-component of the metric in different regions of the physical continuum? The conclusion is that the idea can be realized from a formal mathematical point of view, but it can hardly help in understanding how spacetime structure and time itself appeared from a timeless continuum.

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arXiv2021

On A. D. Sakharov's hypothesis of cosmological transitions with changes in the signature of the metric

I discuss possible consequences of A. D. Sakharov's hypothesis of cosmological transitions with changes in the signature of the metric, based on the path integral approach. This hypothesis raises a number of mathematical and philosophical questions. Mathematical questions concern the definition of the path integral to include integration over spacetime regions with different signatures of the metric. One possible way to describe the changes in the signature is to admit time and space coordinates to be purely imaginary. It may look like a generalization of what we have in the case of pseudo-Riemannian manifolds with a non-trivial topology. The signature in these regions can be fixed by special gauge conditions on components of the metric tensor. The problem is what boundary conditions should be imposed on the boundaries of these regions and how they should be taken into account in the definition of the path integral. The philosophical question is what distinguishes the time coordinate among other coordinates but the sign of the corresponding principal value of the metric tensor. In particular, I try to speculate how the existence of the regions with different signature can affect the evolution of the Universe.

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arXiv2020

Is the Copenhagen interpretation inapplicable to Quantum Cosmology?

It is generally accepted that the Copenhagen interpretation is inapplicable to quantum cosmology, by contrast with the many worlds interpretation. I shall demonstrate that the two basic principles of the Copenhagen interpretation, the principle of wholeness and the principle of complementarity, do make sense in quantum gravity, since we can judge about quantum gravitational processes in the Very Early Universe by their vestiges in our macroscopic Universe. I shall present the extended phase space approach to quantum gravity and show that it can be interpreted in the spirit of the Everett's `relative states' formulation, while there is no contradiction between the `relative states' formulation and the mentioned basic principles of the Copenhagen interpretation.

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arXiv2019

Wave function of the Universe, path integrals and gauge invariance

The paper is devoted to some of the difficulties which the Wheeler - DeWitt quantum geometrodynamics encountered, in particular, a strong mathematical proof that this theory is gauge-invariant, the definition of the wave function of the Universe through a path integral and the illegality of asymptotic boundary conditions in quantum gravity, the derivation of the Wheeler - DeWitt equation from the path integral and the equivalence of the Dirac quantization scheme with other approaches, the problem of definition of physical states in quantum gravity, possible realizations of the Everett concept of "relative states". The problems are rarely discussed in the literature. They are related with the guiding idea that quantum theory of gravity must gauge invariant. It will lead to the question if it is possible to achieve this goal in a mathematically consistent way.

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arXiv2019

On the meaning of the wave function of the Universe

The meaning of the wave function of the Universe was actively discussed in 1980s. In most works on quantum cosmology it is accepted that the wave function is a probability amplitude for the Universe to have some space geometry, or to be found in some point of the Wheeler superspace. It seems that the wave function gives maximally objective description compatible with quantum theory. However, the probability distribution does not depend on time and does not take into account the existing of our macroscopic evolving Universe. What we wish to know is how quantum processes in the Early Universe determined the state of the present Universe in which we are able to observe macroscopic consequences of these quantum processes. As an alternative to the Wheeler - DeWitt quantum geometrodynamics we consider the picture that can be obtained in the extended phase space approach to quantization of gravity. The wave function in this approach describes different states of the Universe which correspond to different stages of its evolution.

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arXiv2018

Is the Wheeler -- DeWitt equation more fundamental than the Schrödinger equation?

The Wheeler -- DeWitt equation was proposed 50 years ago and until now it is the cornerstone of most approaches to quantization of gravity. One can find in the literature the opinion that the Wheeler -- DeWitt equation is even more fundamental than the basic equation of quantum theory, the Schrödinger equation. We still should remember that we are in the situation when no observational data can confirm or reject the fundamental status of the Wheeler -- DeWitt equation, so we can give just indirect arguments in favor of or against it, grounded on mathematical consistency and physical relevance. I shall present the analysis of the situation and comparison of the standard Wheeler -- DeWitt approach with the extended phase space approach to quantization of gravity. In my analysis I suppose, firstly, that a future quantum theory of gravity must be applicable to all phenomena from the early Universe to quantum effects in strong gravitational fields, in the latter case the state of the observer may appear to be significant. Secondly, I suppose that the equation for the wave function of the Universe must not be postulated but derived by means of a mathematically consistent procedure. One should take into account features of gravity, namely, non-trivial spacetime topology and possible absence of asymptotic states. The Schrödinger equation has been derived early for cosmological models with a finite number of degrees of freedom, and just recently it has been found for the spherically symmetric model which is a simplest model with an infinite number of degrees of freedom. The structure of the Schrödinger equation and its general solution appears to be very similar in these cases. The obtained results give grounds to say that the Schrödinger equation retains its fundamental meaning in constructing quantum theory of gravity.

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arXiv2014

The role of BRST charge as a generator of gauge transformations in quantization of gauge theories and Gravity

In the Batalin - Fradkin - Vilkovisky approach to quantization of gauge theories a principal role is given to the BRST charge which can be constructed as a series in Grassmannian (ghost) variables with coefficients given by generalized structure functions of constraints algebra. Alternatively, the BRST charge can be derived making use of the Noether theorem and global BRST invariance of the effective action. In the case of Yang - Mills fields the both methods lead to the same expression for the BRST charge, but it is not valid in the case of General Relativity. It is illustrated by examples of an isotropic cosmological model as well as by spherically-symmetric gravitational model which imitates the full theory of gravity much better. The consideration is based on Hamiltonian formulation of General Relativity in extended phase space. At the quantum level the structure of the BRST charge is of great importance since BRST invariant quantum states are believed to be physical states. Thus, the definition of the BRST charge at the classical level is inseparably related to our attempts to find a true way to quantize Gravity.

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arXiv2014

Generalized spherically symmetric gravitational model: Hamiltonian dynamics in extended phase space and BRST charge

We construct Hamiltonian dynamics of the generalized spherically symmetric gravitational model in extended phase space. We start from the Faddeev - Popov effective action with gauge-fixing and ghost terms, making use of gauge conditions in differential form. It enables us to introduce missing velocities into the Lagrangian and then construct a Hamiltonian function according a usual rule which is applied for systems without constraints. The main feature of Hamiltonian dynamics in extended phase space is that it can be proved to be completely equivalent to Lagrangian dynamics derived from the effective action. We find a BRST invariant form of the effective action by adding terms not affecting Lagrangian equations. After all, we construct the BRST charge according to the Noether theorem. Our algorithm differs from that by Batalin, Fradkin and Vilkovisky, but the resulting BRST charge generates correct transformations for all gravitational degrees of freedom including gauge ones. Generalized spherically symmetric model imitates the full gravitational theory much better then models with finite number of degrees of freedom, so that one can expect appropriate results in the case of the full theory.

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arXiv2013

Hamiltonian dynamics in extended phase space for gravity and its consistency with Lagrangian formalism: a generalized spherically symmetric model as an example

Among theoretical issues in General Relativity the problem of constructing its Hamiltonian formulation is still of interest. The most of attempts to quantize Gravity are based upon Dirac generalization of Hamiltonian dynamics for system with constraints. At the same time there exists another way to formulate Hamiltonian dynamics for constrained systems guided by the idea of extended phase space. We have already considered some features of this approach in the previous MG12 Meeting by the example of a simple isotropic model. Now we apply the approach to a generalized spherically symmetric model which imitates the structure of General Relativity much better. In particular, making use of a global BRST symmetry and the Noether theorem, we construct the BRST charge that generates correct gauge transformations for all gravitational degrees of freedom.

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arXiv2011

A view on the problems of Quantum Gravity

The existing approaches to quantization of gravity aim at giving quantum description of 3-geometry following to the ideas of the Wheeler -- DeWitt geometrodynamics. In this description the role of gauge gravitational degrees of freedom is missed. A probable alternative is to consider gravitational dynamics in extended phase space, taking into account the distinctions between General Relativity and other field theories. The formulation in extended phase space leads to some consequences at classical and quantum levels. At the classical level, it ensures that Hamiltonian dynamics is fully equivalent to Lagrangian dynamics, and the algebra of Poisson brackets is invariant under reparametrizations in a wide enough class including reparametrizations of gauge variables, meantime in the canonical Dirac approach the constraints' algebra is not invariant that creates problems with quantization. At the quantum level, the approach come to the description in which the observer can see various but complementary quantum gravitational phenomena in different reference frames that answers the spirit of General Relativity and Quantum Theory. Though until now the approach was applied to General Relativity in its original formulations, its implementation in different trends, including Quantum Loop Gravity or some other representations of gravitational variables, would also be of interest.

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arXiv2011

Hamiltonian formulation for the theory of gravity and canonical transformations in extended phase space

A starting point for the present work was the statement recently discussed in the literature that two Hamiltonian formulations for the theory of gravity, the one proposed by Dirac and the other by Arnowitt - Deser - Misner, may not be related by a canonical transformation. In its turn, it raises a question about the equivalence of these two Hamiltonian formulations and their equivalence to the original formulation of General Relativity. We argue that, since the transformation from components of metric tensor to the ADM variables touches gauge degrees of freedom, which are non-canonical from the point of view of Dirac, the problem cannot be resolved in the limits of the Dirac approach. The proposed solution requires the extension of phase space by treating gauge degrees of freedom on an equal footing with other variables and introducing missing velocities into the Lagrangian by means of gauge conditions in differential form. We illustrate with a simple cosmological model the features of Hamiltonian dynamics in extended phase space. Then, we give a clear proof for the full gravitational theory that the ADM-like transformation is canonical in extended phase space in a wide enough class of possible parametrizations.

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arXiv2010

On canonical transformations of gravitational variables in extended phase space

Last years a certain attention was attracted to the statement that Hamiltonian formulations of General Relativity, in which different parametrizations of gravitational variables were used, may not be related by a canonical transformation. The example was given by the Hamiltonian formulation of Dirac and that of Arnowitt - Deser - Misner. It might witness for non-equivalence of these formulations and the original (Lagrangian) formulation of General Relativity. The problem is believed to be of importance since many authors make use of various representations of gravitational field as a starting point in searching a way to reconcile the theory of gravity with quantum principles. It can be shown that the mentioned above conclusion about non-equivalence of different Hamiltonian formulations is based on the consideration of canonical transformations in phase space of physical degrees of freedom only, while the transformations also involve gauge degrees of freedom. We shall give a clear proof that Hamiltonian formulations corresponding to different parametrizations of gravitational variables are related by canonical transformations in extended phase space embracing gauge degrees of freedom on an equal footing with physical ones. It will be demonstrated for the full gravitational theory in a wide enough class of parametrizations and gauge conditions.

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