Prof. Dr. Daniele Oriti

Profil

Derzeitige StellungProfessor W-3 und Äquivalente
FachgebietTheoretische Physik
Keywordsquantum gravity, group field theory, discrete graviy, loop quantum gravity, spin foam models
Auszeichnungen

2018: Heisenberg Grant (DFG)

2008: Sofja Kovalevskaja Prize

2005: Votruba Prize

2000: Antonio Stanghellini Prize

Aktuelle Kontaktadresse

LandSpanien
OrtMadrid
Universität/InstitutionUniversidad Complutense de Madrid
Institut/AbteilungFacultad de Ciencias Fisicas, Departamento de Fisica Teorica

Gastgeber*innen während der Förderung

Prof. Dr. Thomas K. ThiemannMax-Planck-Institut für Gravitationsphysik (Albert-Einstein-Institut), Golm
Prof. Dr. Hermann NicolaiMax-Planck-Institut für Gravitationsphysik (Albert-Einstein-Institut), Golm
Beginn der ersten Förderung01.12.2008

Programm(e)

2008Sofja Kovalevskaja-Preis-Programm

Projektbeschreibung der*des Nominierenden

One of the most important open questions in foundational physics is how to consistently combine the principles of Einstein's General Theory of Relativity with those of Quantum theory. While all other forces of nature have been successfully quantised, gravity stubbornly resists to be reconciled with Heisenberg's uncertainty relation. A quantum theory of space and time, called Quantum Gravity, would not only revolutionise physics. It could also drastically change our view of the origin of all being. For instance, Quantum Gravity could tell that the current big bang theory is obsolete, that there was a time before the big bang. One of the most popular approaches to a quantum theory of space and time is Loop Quantum Gravity which today is a serious alternative to string theory and which also makes different predictions. For instance, in Loop Quantum Gravity the possible measurement values of geometrical quantities, such as the length of an object, are quantised. The atoms of geometry consist of tiny loops whose lengths are quantised in units of the Planck length of 10^-33 cm. Similar to the discrete emission spectra of atoms, in Loop Quantum Gravity a black hole can emit Hawking radiation in quantised frequencies only. One of the remaining challenges for the theory, which will ultimately decide whether it will be successful, is the quantisation of the heart of General Relativity, namely Einstein's field equations. This is the research topic of Dr. Oriti. With the aid of the mathematical apparatus of group field theory, Dr. Oriti together with his collaborators succeeded to give an elegant mathematical formulation of the possible quantum evolutions of the loops in terms of so called spin foam models. Dr. Oriti's results are fundamental for the frontier of current research: To find that spin foam model which in the semiclassical regime of negligible quantum fluctuations reproduces the classical Einstein equations.