Lorentzian Robin Universe

TL;DR

This paper investigates the gravitational path integral of Gauss-Bonnet gravity with Robin boundary conditions, revealing that the universe favors Hartle-Hawking initial states and transitions from Euclidean to Lorentzian signature, supported by exact and saddle point analyses.

Contribution

It computes the surface terms for Gauss-Bonnet gravity with Robin boundary conditions and performs an exact transition amplitude calculation, extending previous work to include these boundary conditions.

Findings

Gauss-Bonnet gravity favors Hartle-Hawking no-boundary initial states.

The universe transitions from Euclidean to Lorentzian signature during expansion.

Initial configurations with positive Gauss-Bonnet coupling dominate the path integral.

Abstract

In this paper, we delve into the gravitational path integral of Gauss-Bonnet gravity in four spacetime dimensions, in the mini-superspace approximation. Our primary focus lies in investigating the transition amplitude between distinct boundary configurations. Of particular interest is the case of Robin boundary conditions, known to lead to a stable Universe in Einstein-Hilbert gravity, alongside Neumann boundary conditions. To ensure a consistent variational problem, we supplement the bulk action with suitable surface terms. This study leads us to compute the necessary surface terms required for Gauss-Bonnet gravity with the Robin boundary condition, which wasn't known earlier. Thereafter, we perform an exact computation of the transition amplitude. Through $\hbar\to0$ analysis, we discover that the Gauss-Bonnet gravity inherently favors the initial configuration, aligning with the Hartle-Hawking no-boundary proposal. Remarkably, as the Universe expands, it undergoes a transition from the Euclidean (imaginary time) to the Lorentzian signature (real time). To further reinforce our findings, we employ a saddle point analysis utilizing the Picard-Lefschetz methods. The saddle point analysis allows us to find the initial configurations which lead to Hartle-Hawking no-boundary Universe that agrees with the exact computations. Our study concludes that for positive Gauss-Bonnet coupling, initial configurations corresponding to the Hartle-Hawking no-boundary Universe gives dominant contribution in the gravitational path-integral.