Quantum Gravity, the Origin of Time and Time's Arrow

1992/09/02 by J. W. Moffat · 12 citations
Physics and Astronomy · #Cosmology and Gravitation Theories #Noncommutative and Quantum Gravity Theories #Quantum Mechanics and Applications #gr-qc

paper · pdf · doi:10.1007/bf01883721

published as Found.Phys.23:411-437,1993 · 37 pages

arxiv created 1992/09/02 · arxiv updated 2014/11/17

Abstract

The local Lorentz and diffeomorphism symmetries of Einstein's gravitational theory are spontaneously broken by a Higgs mechanism by invoking a phase transition in the early Universe, at a critical temperature T_c below which the symmetry is restored. The spontaneous breakdown of the vacuum state generates an external time and the wave function of the Universe satisfies a time dependent Schrodinger equation, which reduces to the Wheeler-deWitt equation in the classical regime for T < T_c, allowing a semi-classical WKB approximation to the wave function. The conservation of energy is spontaneously violated for T > T_c and matter is created fractions of seconds after the big bang, generating the matter in the Universe. The time direction of the vacuum expectation value of the scalar Higgs field generates a time asymmetry, which defines the cosmological arrow of time and the direction of increasing entropy as the Lorentz symmetry is restored at low temperatures.

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• Inhomogeneous Cosmology, Inflation and Late-Time Accelerating Universe
• Causality and superluminal behavior in classical field theories: Applications tok-essence theories and modified-Newtonian-dynamics-like theories of gravity
• Variations of the Fine Structure Constant in Space and Time
• Cuscuton and low-energy limit of Hořava-Lifshitz gravity
• ON INFLATION AND VARIATION OF THE STRONG COUPLING CONSTANT
• Lorentz violation of quantum gravity
• The fundamental constants and their variation: observational and theoretical status
• Testing short distance anisotropy in space. [europepmc]