WheelerDeWitt equation

The WheelerDeWitt equation[1] is an attempt to combine mathematically the ideas of quantum mechanics and
general relativity, a step toward a theory of quantum gravity. In this approach, time plays no role in the equation, leading to the problem of time.[2] More specically, the equation describes the quantum version of the
Hamiltonian constraint using metric variables. Its commutation relations with the dieomorphism constraints
generate the Bergmann-Komar group (which is the
dieomorphism group on-shell, but diers o-shell).

H = Gijkl ij kl (3)R = 0
2
where = det(ij ) and Gijkl = (ik jl + il jk
ij kl ) is the Wheeler-DeWitt metric.
Quantization puts hats on the momenta and eld variables; that is, the functions of numbers in the classical
case become operators that modify the state function in
the quantum case. Thus we obtain the operator

Because of its connections with the low-energy eective

eld theory, it inherits all the problems of the naively
1 b

quantized GR, and thus it cannot be used at multi-loop b

b
H= G
bij
bkl (3)R.
ijkl
level, etc., at least not according to the current knowledge.
2
The equation has not played a role in string theory thus
far, since all properly dened and understood descriptions
of string/M-theory deal with some xed asymptotic conditions on the background. Thus, at innity, the right
choice of the time coordinate t is determined in every description, so there is a preferred denition of the
Hamiltonian (with nonzero eigenvalues) to evolve states
of the system forward in time. This avoids all the issues
of the Wheeler-de Witt equation to dynamically generate
a time dimension.

Working in position space, these operators are

ij (t, xk ) ij (t, xk )

ij (t, xk ) i

One can apply the operator to a general wave functional

b
of the metric H[]
= 0 where:

But at the end, there could exist a Wheeler-de Witt style

manner to describe the bulk dynamics of quantum theory of gravity. Some experts believe that this equation
still holds the potential for understanding quantum gravity; however, decades after the equation was rst written
down, it has not brought physicists as clear results about
quantum gravity as some of the results building on completely dierent approaches, such as string theory.

.
ij (t, xk )

[] = a+

(x)(x)dx3 +

(x, y)(x)(y)dx3 dy 3 +...

Which would give a set of constraints amongst the coefcients (x, y, ...) . Which means the amplitudes for N
gravitons at certain positions is related to the amplitudes
for a dierent number of gravitons at dierent positions.
Or one could use the two eld formalism treating (g) as
an independent eld so the wave function is [, ]

Motivation and background

2 Derivation from path integral

In canonical gravity, spacetime is foliated into spacelike

submanifolds. The three-metric (i.e., metric on the hy- The WheelerDeWitt equation can be derived from
a path integral using the gravitational action in the
persurface) is ij and given by
Euclidean quantum gravity paradigm:[3]
g dx dx = ( N 2 +k k ) dt2 +2k dxk dt+ij dxi dxj .
Z=
eI[g ,] Dg D
C
In that equation the Roman indices run over the values 1,
2, 3 and the Greek indices run over the values 1, 2, 3, 4. where one integrates over a class of Riemannian fourThe three-metric ij is the eld, and we denote its con- metrics and matter elds matching certain boundary conjugate momenta as kl . The Hamiltonian is a constraint ditions. Because the concept of a universal time coordinate seems unphysical, and at odds with the principles
(characteristic of most relativistic systems)
1

4 SEE ALSO

and | may appear familiar,

Although the symbols H
their interpretation in the WheelerDeWitt equation is
substantially dierent from non-relativistic quantum mechanics. | is no longer a spatial wave function in the
traditional sense of a complex-valued function that is dened on a 3-dimensional space-like surface and normalized to unity. Instead it is a functional of eld congurations on all of spacetime. This wave function contains all
of the information about the geometry and matter con is still an operator that acts on
tent of the universe. H
We obtain the Hamiltonian constraint from
the Hilbert space of wave functions, but it is not the same
Hilbert space as in the nonrelativistic case, and the Hamiltonian no longer determines evolution of the system, so
IEH
=0

the Schrdinger equation H|

= i/t| no longer
N
applies. This property is known as timelessness. The
where IEH is the Einstein-Hilbert action, and N is reemergence of time requires the tools of decoherence
the lapse function (i.e., the Lagrange multiplier for the and clock operators (or the use of a scalar eld).
Hamiltonian constraint). This is purely classical so far.
We also need to augment the Hamiltonian constraint with
We can recover the WheelerDeWitt equation from
momentum constraints
of general relativity, the action is evaluated around a 3metric which we take as the boundary of the classes of
four-metrics and on which a certain conguration of matter elds exists. This latter might for example be the current conguration of matter in our universe as we observe
it today. Evaluating the action so that it only depends on
the 3-metric and the matter elds is sucient to remove
the need for a time coordinate as it eectively xes a point
in the evolution of the universe.

Z
=0=
N


I[g , ] 
 exp (I[g , ]) Dg D
N

where is the three-dimensional boundary. Observe

that this expression vanishes, implying that the functional derivative also vanishes, giving us the Wheeler
DeWitt equation. A similar statement may be made for
the dieomorphism constraint (take functional derivative
with respect to the shift functions instead).

Mathematical formalism

P(x)
| = 0
associated with spatial dieomorphism invariance.
In minisuperspace approximations, we only have one
Hamiltonian constraint (instead of innitely many of
them).
In fact, the principle of general covariance in general relativity implies that global evolution per se does not exist;
the time t is just a label we assign to one of the coordinate axes. Thus, what we think about as time evolution of
any physical system is just a gauge transformation, similar to that of QED induced by U(1) local gauge transformation ei(r) where (r) plays the role of local
time. The role of a Hamiltonian is simply to restrict the
space of the kinematic states of the Universe to that of
physical states - the ones that follow gauge orbits. For
this reason we call it a Hamiltonian constraint. Upon
quantization, physical states become wave functions that
lie in the kernel of the Hamiltonian operator.

The WheelerDeWitt equation[1] is a functional dierential equation. It is ill dened in the general case, but very
important in theoretical physics, especially in quantum
gravity. It is a functional dierential equation on the
space of three dimensional spatial metrics. The Wheeler
DeWitt equation has the form of an operator acting on a
wave functional, the functional reduces to a function in
cosmology. Contrary to the general case, the Wheeler
DeWitt equation is well dened in mini-superspaces like In general, the Hamiltonian vanishes for a theory with
the conguration space of cosmological theories. An ex- general covariance or time-scaling invariance.
ample of such a wave function is the HartleHawking
state. Bryce DeWitt rst published this equation in 1967
under the name EinsteinSchrdinger equation"; it was 4 See also
later renamed the "WheelerDeWitt equation.[4]
ADM formalism
Simply speaking, the WheelerDeWitt equation says
Dieomorphism constraint
Euclidean quantum gravity

where H(x)
is the Hamiltonian constraint in quantized
general relativity and | stands for the wave function
of the universe. Unlike ordinary quantum eld theory or
quantum mechanics, the Hamiltonian is a rst class constraint on physical states. We also have an independent
constraint for each point in space.

Regge Calculus
Canonical quantum gravity
Peres metric
Loop quantum gravity

References

[1] DeWitt, B. S. (1967). Quantum Theory of Gravity.

I. The Canonical Theory.
Phys.
Rev.
160 (5): 11131148. Bibcode:1967PhRv..160.1113D.
doi:10.1103/PhysRev.160.1113.
[2] https://medium.com/the-physics-arxiv-blog/
d5d3dc850933
[3] See J. B. Hartle and S. W. Hawking, Wave function of the
Universe. Phys. Rev. D 28 (1983) 29602975, eprint.
[4] Go to Arxiv.org to read Notes for a Brief History of
Quantum Gravity by Carlo Rovelli

Herbert W. Hamber and Ruth M. Williams (2011).

Discrete Wheeler-DeWitt Equation.
Physical Review D 84: 104033. arXiv:1109.2530.
Bibcode:2011PhRvD..84j4033H.
doi:10.1103/PhysRevD.84.104033.
Available
at .
Herbert W. Hamber, Reiko Toriumi and
Ruth M. Williams (2012).
Wheeler-DeWitt
Equation in 2+1 Dimensions.
Physical Review D 86:
084010.
arXiv:1207.3759.
Bibcode:2012PhRvD..86h4010H.
doi:10.1103/PhysRevD.86.084010.
Available
at .

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