Holography in a background-independent effective theory

TL;DR

This paper explores how the strong equivalence principle relates to quantum field theory, revealing that holography naturally emerges when considering boundary decoherence effects necessary for the principle's exact application.

Contribution

It demonstrates that holography arises from the equivalence principle when boundary decoherence is incorporated into a background-independent quantum theory.

Findings

Holography emerges from boundary decoherence effects.

The equivalence principle constrains the form of the partition function.

Boundary terms are essential for applying the equivalence principle exactly.

Abstract

We discuss the meaning of the strong equivalence principle when applied to a quantum field theory. We show that, because of unitary inequivalence of accelerated frames, the only way for the equivalence principle to apply exactly is to add a boundary term representing the decoherence of degrees of freedom leaving the observable region of the bulk. We formulate the constraints necessary for the equivalence principle to hold at the level of the partition function and argue that, when the non-unitary part is expressed as a functional integral over the horizon, holography arises naturally as a consequence of the equivalence principle.