Vacua and infrared radiation in de Sitter quantum field theory

Fuente: arXiv
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Autori principali: Kudler-Flam, Jonah, Prabhu, Kartik, Satishchandran, Gautam
Natura: Preprint
Pubblicazione: 2025
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author Kudler-Flam, Jonah
Prabhu, Kartik
Satishchandran, Gautam
author_facet Kudler-Flam, Jonah
Prabhu, Kartik
Satishchandran, Gautam
contents We analyze the asymptotic behavior of quantum fields and perturbative quantum gravity in de Sitter space. We show that the necessary and sufficient condition for the existence of a de Sitter invariant vacuum state in the free theory is if the local field observables commute with the ``memory observable'' on any cosmological horizon. This criterion yields simple, gauge-invariant proofs of the existence of a de Sitter invariant vacuum for the (source-free) massive scalar field, electromagnetic field and linearized gravitational field. However, the massless, minimally coupled scalar does not satisfy this criterion and, consequently, there is no de Sitter invariant vacuum state. In this case, we construct the Hilbert space of normalizable states that have ``square integrable'' distributions in the memory and the conjugate constant mode. This Hilbert space has a unitary representation of the de Sitter symmetry group but no de Sitter invariant normalizable state. However even for free theories with a normalizable de Sitter invariant vacuum we show, by a simple example, that in the presence of a source a large number of infrared particles can be produced if the source interacts with the field for timescales much longer than the Hubble time. In the limit as the source persists forever it emits an infinite number of infrared particles.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2503_19957
institution arXiv
publishDate 2025
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Vacua and infrared radiation in de Sitter quantum field theory
Kudler-Flam, Jonah
Prabhu, Kartik
Satishchandran, Gautam
High Energy Physics - Theory
General Relativity and Quantum Cosmology
Mathematical Physics
We analyze the asymptotic behavior of quantum fields and perturbative quantum gravity in de Sitter space. We show that the necessary and sufficient condition for the existence of a de Sitter invariant vacuum state in the free theory is if the local field observables commute with the ``memory observable'' on any cosmological horizon. This criterion yields simple, gauge-invariant proofs of the existence of a de Sitter invariant vacuum for the (source-free) massive scalar field, electromagnetic field and linearized gravitational field. However, the massless, minimally coupled scalar does not satisfy this criterion and, consequently, there is no de Sitter invariant vacuum state. In this case, we construct the Hilbert space of normalizable states that have ``square integrable'' distributions in the memory and the conjugate constant mode. This Hilbert space has a unitary representation of the de Sitter symmetry group but no de Sitter invariant normalizable state. However even for free theories with a normalizable de Sitter invariant vacuum we show, by a simple example, that in the presence of a source a large number of infrared particles can be produced if the source interacts with the field for timescales much longer than the Hubble time. In the limit as the source persists forever it emits an infinite number of infrared particles.
title Vacua and infrared radiation in de Sitter quantum field theory
topic High Energy Physics - Theory
General Relativity and Quantum Cosmology
Mathematical Physics
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2503.19957