CarHol: Towards a holographic description of gravity in flat spacetime using carrollian physics

Name of applicant

Emil Have

Title

Postdoctoral Fellow

Institution

University of Oxford

Amount

DKK 1,128,638

Year

2024

Type of grant

Internationalisation Fellowships

What?

This project will develop a framework for a holographic description of gravity in flat spacetime, which has zero curvature, in terms of data encoded in a carrollian conformal field theory. This has so far only been achieved in spacetimes with constant negative curvature, where the boundary is simpler. In flat spacetime, the boundary is more complicated and has a so-called carrollian structure.

Why?

Combining quantum mechanics, which describes the microcosm, with Einstein's theory of general relativity, which describes the macrocosm, into a theory of quantum gravity remains one of the most important unsolved problems in physics. Using new insights from carrollian physics. which arises when the lightspeed approaches zero, is a promising new avenue towards this goal in flat spacetime.

How?

By leveraging recent results on the carrollian structure of the boundaries of flat spacetime, I will develop a correspondence between gravity in flat spacetime and a carrollian field theory on the boundary. In the long-wavelength limit, this will become a relation between carrollian fluids and gravity, which I will make precise. I will relate the results to the celestial holography programme.

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