The holographic nature of quantum information storage in asymptotically flat spacetimes

Abstract: Knowledge of all observables on a Cauchy surface enables us to determine these observables everywhere else in the spacetime. Thus any Cauchy surface can be deemed to be containing all information. Here, we argue that asymptotically flat spacetimes possess a holographic nature, so that all this information is stored just on the boundary of a Cauchy surface. Allowing for a few reasonable assumptions about the low energy structure of any complete theory of quantum gravity enables us to find that an asymptotic observer who resides at the past boundary of future null infinity has access to all the information about massless excitations. We also show that information available in any cut of future null infinity is also available in any later cut, but the converse doesn't hold. Similar results hold for past null infinity. We will comment on several interesting and exciting questions that this line of investigation sheds light on, including work in progress.

HEP - theory

Audience: researchers in the topic

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