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In mathematical physics, the concept of quantum spacetime is a generalization of the usual concept of spacetime in which some variables that ordinarily commute are assumed not to commute and form a different Lie algebra. The choice of that algebra still varies from theory to theory. As a result of this change some variables that are usually continuous may become discrete. Often only such discrete variables are called "quantized"; usage varies. The idea of quantum spacetime was proposed in the early days of quantum theory by Heisenberg and Ivanenko as a way to eliminate infinities from quantum field theory. The germ of the idea passed from Heisenberg to Rudolf Peierls, who noted that electrons in a magnetic field can be regarded as moving in a quantum space-time, and to Robert Oppenheimer, who carried it to Hartland Snyder, who published the first concrete example. Snyder's Lie algebra was made simple by C. N. Yang in the same year. Physical reasons have been given to believe that physical spacetime is a quantum spacetime. In quantum mechanics position and momentum variables are already noncommutative, obey the Heisenberg uncertainty principle, and are continuous. Because of the Heisenberg uncertainty relations, greater energy is needed to probe smaller distances. Ultimately, according to gravity theory, the probing particles form black holes and destroy what is to be measured. Then the process cannot be repeated, and so does not count as a measurement. This limited measurability led many to expect that our usual picture of continuous commutative spacetime breaks down at Planck scale distances, if not sooner. Again, physical spacetime is expected to be quantum because physical coordinates are already slightly noncommutative. The astronomical coordinates of a star are modified by gravitational fields between us and the star, as in the deflection of light by the sun, one of the classic tests of general relativity. Therefore the coordinates actually depend on gravitational field variables. According to quantum theories of gravity these field variables do not commute; therefore coordinates that depend on them likely do not commute. Both arguments are based on pure gravity and quantum theory, and they limit the measurement of time by the only time constant in pure quantum gravity, the Planck time. Our instruments, however, are not purely gravitational but are made of particles. They may set a more severe, larger, limit than the Planck time. Quantum spacetimes are often described mathematically using the noncommutative geometry of Connes, quantum geometry, or quantum groups. Any noncommutative algebra with at least four generators could be interpreted as a quantum spacetime, but the following desiderata have been suggested: *Local Lorentz group and Poincaré group symmetries should be retained, possibly in a generalised form. Their generalisation often takes the form of a quantum group acting on the quantum spacetime algebra. *The algebra might plausibly arise in an effective description of quantum gravity effects in some regime of that theory. For example, a physical parameter , perhaps the Planck length, might control the deviation from commutative classical spacetime, so that ordinary Lorentzian spacetime arises as . *There might be a notion of quantum differential calculus on the quantum spacetime algebra, compatible with the (quantum) symmetry and preferably reducing to the usual differential calculus as . This would permit wave equations for particles and fields and facilitate predictions for experimental deviations from classical spacetime physics that can then be tested experimentally. *The Lie algebra should be semisimple (Yang, I. E. Segal 1947). This makes it easier to formulate a finite theory. Several models were found in the 1990s more or less meeting most of the above criteria. ==Bicrossproduct model spacetime== The bicrossproduct model spacetime was introduced by Shahn Majid and Henri Ruegg and has Lie algebra relations : for the spatial variables and the time variable . Here has dimensions of time and is therefore expected to be something like the Planck time. The Poincaré group here is correspondingly deformed, now to a certain bicrossproduct quantum group with the following characteristic features. The momentum generators commute among themselves but addition of momenta, reflected in the quantum group structure, is deformed (momentum space becomes a non-abelian group). Meanwhile, the Lorentz group generators enjoy their usual relations among themselves but act non-linearly on the momentum space. The orbits for this action are depicted in the figure as a cross-section of against one of the . The on-shell region describing particles in the upper center of the image would normally be hyperboloids but these are now `squashed' into the cylinder : in simplified units. The upshot is that Lorentz-boosting a momentum will never increase it above the Planck momentum. The existence of a highest momentum scale or lowest distance scale fits the physical picture. This squashing comes from the non-linearity of the Lorentz boost and is an endemic feature of bicrossproduct quantum groups known since their introduction in 1988. Some physicists dub the bicrossproduct model doubly special relativity, since it sets an upper limit to both speed and momentum. Another consequence of the squashing is that the propagation of particles is deformed, even of light, leading to a variable speed of light. This prediction requires the particular to be the physical energy and spatial momentum (as opposed to some other function of them). Arguments for this identification were provided in 1999 by Giovanni Amelino-Camelia and Majid through a study of plane waves for a quantum differential calculus in the model. They take the form : in other words a form which is sufficiently close to classical that one might plausibly believe the interpretation. At the moment such wave analysis represents the best hope to obtain physically testable predictions from the model. Prior to this work there were a number of unsupported claims to make predictions from the model based solely on the form of the Poincaré quantum group. There were also claims based on an earlier -Poincaré quantum group introduced by Jurek Lukierski and co-workers which should be viewed as an important precursor to the bicrossproduct one, albeit without the actual quantum spacetime and with different proposed generators for which the above picture does not apply. The bicrossproduct model spacetime has also been called -deformed spacetime with . 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア(Wikipedia)』 ■ウィキペディアで「quantum spacetime」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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