Theory HEP Seminar

Path integrals, black holes and the beginning of the universe

Jean-Luc Lehners

Albert Einstein Institute

In this talk, I will review recent progress in evaluating gravitational path integrals in minisuperspace, both in the context of black holes and regarding the implications for the Hartle-Hawking no-boundary proposal. This not only reveals a close relation between black holes and the big bang, but also provides clues for an effective description of the quantum origin of the universe.