Field theory papers-Hossenfelder Konopka Magueijo

[marcus]

Field theory papers---Hossenfelder Konopka Magueijo

Recently I noticed several papers exploring what QFT or quantum physics of some related sort might be like with a small invariant length scale. these are by young researchers: a postdoc, a PhD grad student, a young faculty.

I can't evaluate. What strikes me is the coincidence that all are exploring how to modify familiar physics to include an invariant scale and I think the work leads to testable effects.

In no particular order
http://arxiv.org/abs/hep-th/0601030
A Field Theory Model With a New Lorentz-Invariant Energy Scale
Tomasz Konopka
20 pages
"A framework is proposed that allows to write down field theories with a new energy scale while explicitly preserving Lorentz invariance and without spoiling the features of standard quantum field theory which allow quick calculations of scattering amplitudes. If the invariant energy is set to the Planck scale, these deformed field theories could serve to model quantum gravity phenomenology. The proposal is based on the idea, appearing for example in Deformed Special Relativity, that momentum space could be curved rather than flat. This idea is implemented by introducing a fifth dimension and imposing an extra constraint on physical field configurations in addition to the mass shell constraint. It is shown that a deformed interacting scalar field theory is unitary. Also, a deformed version of QED is argued to give scattering amplitudes that reproduce the usual ones in the leading order. Possibilities for experimental signatures are discussed, but more work on the framework's consistency and interpretation is necessary to make concrete predictions."

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http://arxiv.org/abs/hep-th/0603032
Interpretation of Quantum Field Theories with a Minimal Length Scale
S. Hossenfelder

"It has been proposed that the incorporation of an observer independent minimal length scale into the quantum field theories of the standard model effectively describes phenomenological aspects of quantum gravity. The aim of this paper is to interpret this description and its implications for scattering processes."

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http://arxiv.org/abs/gr-qc/0603073
Could quantum gravity be tested with high intensity Lasers?
Joao Magueijo

"In quantum gravity theories Planckian behavior is triggered by the energy of elementary particles approaching the Planck energy, E_Planck, but it's also possible that anomalous behavior strikes systems of particles with total energy near E_Planck. This is usually perceived to be pathological and has been labelled "the soccer ball problem''. We point out that there is no obvious contradiction with experiment if coherent collections of particles with bulk energy of order E_Planck do indeed display Planckian behavior, a possibility that would open a new experimental window. Unfortunately field theory realizations of deformed special relativity never exhibit a "soccer ball problem''; we present several formulations where this is undeniably true. Upon closer scrutiny we discover that the only chance for Planckian behavior to be triggered by large coherent energies involves the details of second quantization. We find a formulation where the quanta have their energy-momentum (mass-shell) relations deformed as a function of the bulk energy of the coherent packet to which they belong, rather than the frequency. Given ongoing developments in Laser technology, such a possibility would be of great experimental interest."

 

[marcus]

I didnt realize it earlier but these people discuss this and related topics among themselves.

Magueijo acknowledges among other people Sabine Hossenfelder, Shahn Majid and Lee Smolin ("for very helpful comments on various versions of this manuscript") and Hossenfelder acknowledges Magueijo and Konopka, among others---I didnt check whom Konopka mentions.

the papers are all different, take quite different approaches, have different goals (Magueijo seriously considers having tests of QG DSR with powerful lasers, which kind of takes my breath away)

Sabine has joined in some of our threads at PF, the other two not, AFAIK.

Maybe we are seeing beginnings of a flurry of research about how an invariant scale---Planck scale---might modify familiar phyics and potentially have some measurable effect. Are there more papers in the same vein that anyone has noted?

 

[Entropia]

I find this research interesting and promising. The idea of a minimum length scale has been explored in the past, but these papers present new ways to incorporate it into quantum field theories while still maintaining Lorentz invariance. The fact that these theories could potentially be tested experimentally is also exciting. However, more work is needed to fully understand and interpret the implications of these theories, and to make concrete predictions for experimental verification. I look forward to seeing how this research progresses and potentially leads us to a better understanding of quantum gravity.