1–5 Sept 2026
University of Sussex
Europe/London timezone

A tale of scales in Asymptotically Safe Quantum Gravity

Not scheduled
1m
Large Lecture Theatre (Jubilee Building)

Large Lecture Theatre

Jubilee Building

Speaker

Francesco Ferrarin (University of Copenhagen, Niels Bohr Institute)

Description

Asymptotically safe quantum gravity has shown remarkable success when coupled to matter, notably yielding a successful postdiction of the top quark mass when the quantum gravity scale is identified with the Planck scale, a natural choice in a fundamental realization of Asymptotic Safety. This success raises the possibility that, even if not fundamental, asymptotically safe gravity may emerge as an effective description within a more fundamental theory. In such a scenario, the notion of scale becomes central.
Starting from the postdiction of the top-quark mass, we explore different notions of physical scales, investigating how the regime of validity of Quantum Field Theory connects to the fixed-point scale, the species scale, and the scale of a potential underlying theory. We further analyze how this interplay depends on the matter content, revealing a nontrivial and surprising structure.

Affiliation Niels Bohr Institute, University of Copenhagen
Career status PhD student

Authors

Dr Aaron Held (Ecole Normale Supérieure) Prof. Alessia Platania (NBI, University of Copenhagen) Francesco Ferrarin (University of Copenhagen, Niels Bohr Institute) Mr Álvaro Fernández Madrid (University of Copenhagen, Niels Bohr Institute)

Presentation materials

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