The gravitational S-matrix

Understand

We investigate the hypothesized existence of an S-matrix for gravity, and some of its expected general properties.

• We first discuss basic questions regarding existence of such a matrix, including those of infrared divergences and description of asymptotic states.
• Distinct scattering behavior occurs in the Born, eikonal, and strong gravity regimes, and we describe aspects of both the partial wave and momentum space amplitudes, and their analytic properties, from these regimes.
• Classically the strong gravity region would be dominated by formation of black holes, and we assume its unitary quantum dynamics is described by corresponding resonances.