We have studied neutron quantum states in the potential well formed by the earths gravitational field and a horizontal mirror. The estimated characteristic sizes of the neutron wave functions in the two lowest quantum states correspond to expectations with an experimental accuracy. A position-sensitive neutron detector with an extra-high spatial resolution of ~2 microns was developed and tested for this particular experiment, to be used to measure the spatial density distribution in a standing neutron wave above a mirror for a set of some of the lowest quantum states. The present experiment can be used to set an upper limit for an additional short-range fundamental force. We studied methodological uncertainties as well as the feasibility of improving further the accuracy of this experiment.
An upper limit to non-Newtonian attracive forces is obtained from the measurement of quantum states of neutrons in the Earths gravitational field. This limit improves the existing constrains in the nanometer range.
The lowest stationary quantum state of neutrons in the Earths gravitational field is identified in the measurement of neutron transmission between a horizontal mirror on the bottom and an absorber on top. Such an assembly is not transparent for neutrons if the absorber height is smaller than the height of the lowest quantum state.
In this paper we use the AdS/CFT correspondence to refine and then establish a set of old conjectures about symmetries in quantum gravity. We first show that any global symmetry, discrete or continuous, in a bulk quantum gravity theory with a CFT dual would lead to an inconsistency in that CFT, and thus that there are no bulk global symmetries in AdS/CFT. We then argue that any long-range bulk gauge symmetry leads to a global symmetry in the boundary CFT, whose consistency requires the existence of bulk dynamical objects which transform in all finite-dimensional irreducible representations of the bulk gauge group. We mostly assume that all internal symmetry groups are compact, but we also give a general condition on CFTs, which we expect to be true quite broadly, which implies this. We extend all of these results to the case of higher-form symmetries. Finally we extend a recently proposed new motivation for the weak gravity conjecture to more general gauge groups, reproducing the convex hull condition of Cheung and Remmen. An essential point, which we dwell on at length, is precisely defining what we mean by gauge and global symmetries in the bulk and boundary. Quantum field theory results we meet while assembling the necessary tools include continuous global symmetries without Noether currents, new perspectives on spontaneous symmetry-breaking and t Hooft anomalies, a new order parameter for confinement which works in the presence of fundamental quarks, a Hamiltonian lattice formulation of gauge theories with arbitrary discrete gauge groups, an extension of the Coleman-Mandula theorem to discrete symmetries, and an improved explanation of the decay $pi^0togamma gamma$ in the standard model of particle physics. We also describe new black hole solutions of the Einstein equation in $d+1$ dimensions with horizon topology $mathbb{T}^ptimes mathbb{S}^{d-p-1}$.
Two-dimensional random surfaces are studied numerically by the dynamical triangulation method. In order to generate various kinds of random surfaces, two higher derivative terms are added to the action. The phases of surfaces in the two-dimensional parameter space are classified into three states: flat, crumpled surface, and branched polymer. In addition, there exists a special point (pure gravity) corresponding to the universal fractal surface. A new probe to detect branched polymers is proposed, which makes use of the minbu(minimum neck baby universe) analysis. This method can clearly distinguish the branched polymer phase from another according to the sizes and arrangements of baby universes. The size distribution of baby universes changes drastically at the transition point between the branched polymer and other kind of surface. The phases of surfaces coupled with multi-Ising spins are studied in a similar manner.
We propose a thought experiment to detect low-energy Quantum Gravity phenomena using Quantum Optical Information Technologies. Gravitational field perturbations, such as gravitational waves and quantum gravity fluctuations, decohere the entangled photon pairs, revealing the presence of gravitational field fluctuations including those more speculative sources such as compact extra dimensions and the sub-millimetric hypothetical low-energy quantum gravity phenomena and then set a limit for the decoherence of photon bunches and entangled pairs in space detectable with the current astronomical space technology.