Speaker: Yasaman Yazdi (Imperial Coll., London)
Title: Fundamental questions and causal set theory
Abstract:
Causal set theory proposes that spacetime is fundamentally discrete and the causal relations among the discrete elements play a prominent role in the physics. A causal set is made up of ‘atoms’ of spacetime, roughly a minimum Planck distance apart, and there is nothing in between them. This stark difference with the continuum theory requires us to rethink how familiar smooth quantities can emerge. It also offers new possibilities to probe unknown physics. Causal set theory has touched on a number of fundamental open questions. In this talk I will focus on two of these. One is the potential microscopic origin of black hole entropy in terms of entanglement entropy. The second is the cosmological constant puzzle and the more recent Hubble tension. I will discuss the history of these topics in the context of causal set theory as well as recent progress.
Room: Sala de Reuniões e Seminários (2nd Floor of physics building)