Research in String Theory and Field Theory

This award funds the research activities of Professor Sumit R. Das at the University of Kentucky.

Quantum Mechanics describes all known phenomena in the microscopic world of atoms, nuclei, and elementary particles. General Relativity is the theory of gravity: it describes gravitational phenomena in the macroscopic world, all the way from terrestrial to astronomical scales. To obtain a coherent all-encompassing physical theory it is necessary to combine these two sets of laws in a logically consistent fashion.

However, construction of such a consistent framework remains one of the most important unsolved foundational problems in contemporary physics. This project aims to address several issues which arise when one tries to combine Quantum Mechanics and General Relativity, using new insights which have been recently gained in both these areas. One key ingredient which will be used is "quantum entanglement" --- a property of quantum mechanics which explains why measurements made at places which are far from each other can be correlated in a precise fashion.

Quantum entanglement is at the heart of a variety of physical phenomena observed in nature and is one of the basic principles used in the construction of quantum computers. Consequently, results of this research will serve the national interest by advancing fundamental science in the US. This is the main intellectual merit of this project.

The PI will also involve graduate students and postdoctoral scholars in this research, thus providing them valuable training necessary to develop into independent scientists and educators. In addition, the results of this research will be used to enhance classroom education both at the graduate and undergraduate levels. The PI also plans to give public talks about this subject in various forums, and to deliver lectures at the “Osher Lifelong Learning Institute” which offers courses and enrichment programs to members of the community.

The PI also plans to engage in “Science for Everyone, KY” which is an outreach program based in Lexington with an aim to increase scientific awareness in the community.

More technically, Professor Das will study aspects of the Holographic Correspondence which relates gravitational theories to non-gravitational theories in a lower number of space-time dimensions. This implies that space itself is an emergent concept. Furthermore, it is becoming increasingly clear that quantum entanglement plays a key role in this emergence.

The projects that will be pursued have three main goals. The first is to explore recently developed notions of entanglement in the field space in quantum field theories, and its relationship to notions of entanglement between spatial regions in their gravitational duals. This will be done in known examples of the holographic correspondence which appear in String Theory.

The second goal is to find the detailed holographic map in a class of exactly solvable models which are dual descriptions of black holes. The third goal is to apply the concepts and methods developed to learn about entanglement properties of many-body systems which appear in diverse areas of physics. The results of this research will throw light on the origins of the holographic correspondence and the process in which the internal degrees of freedom of field theories metamorphose into additional dimensions in space-time.

This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.