A bootstrap strategy for asymptotic safety

TL;DR

This paper proposes a new bootstrap approach to asymptotic safety in quantum gravity, demonstrating a self-consistent ultraviolet fixed point with near-Gaussian scaling exponents in a simplified model, suggesting potential for full theory.

Contribution

It introduces a bootstrap strategy for asymptotic safety and tests it on a simplified gravity model, revealing promising fixed point properties.

Findings

Identifies a self-consistent ultraviolet fixed point in a simplified gravity model.

Universal scaling exponents are near-Gaussian despite residual interactions.

Curvature invariants become increasingly irrelevant at high energies.

Abstract

A search strategy for asymptotic safety is put forward and tested for a simplified version of gravity in four dimensions using the renormalization group. Taking the action to be a high-order polynomial of the Ricci scalar, a self-consistent ultraviolet fixed point is found where curvature invariants become increasingly irrelevant with increasing mass dimension. Intriguingly, universal scaling exponents take near-Gaussian values despite the presence of residual interactions. Asymptotic safety of metric gravity would seem in reach if this pattern carries over to the full theory.