Lectures in Quantum Gravity

Abstract

Formulating a quantum theory of gravity lies at the heart of fundamental theoretical physics. This collection of lecture notes encompasses a selection of topics that were covered in six mini-courses at the Nordita PhD school "Towards Quantum Gravity". The scope was to provide a coherent picture, from its foundation to forefront research, emphasizing connections between different areas. The lectures begin with perturbative quantum gravity and effective field theory. Subsequently, two ultraviolet-complete approaches are presented: asymptotically safe gravity and string theory. Finally, elements of quantum effects in black hole spacetimes are discussed.

Comments: Lecture notes PhD school "Towards Quantum Gravity", Nordita Scientific Program "Quantum Gravity: from gravitational EFTs to UV complete approaches". 265 pages + references, 37 figures - V2: typos fixed and references added - V3: matches published version