Quantum Gravity and the Functional Renormalization Group: The Road towards Asymptotic Safety [Hardcover]

A self-contained pedagogical introduction to asymptotic safety and the functional renormalization group in quantum gravity, for graduate students and researchers.This volume provides a unique introduction to the gravitational asymptotic safety scenario within quantum gravity research. Aimed at graduate students and experienced researchers alike, it guides readers from the foundations to the state-of-the-art in the field, including applications to black holes and the cosmology near the Big Bang.This volume provides a unique introduction to the gravitational asymptotic safety scenario within quantum gravity research. Aimed at graduate students and experienced researchers alike, it guides readers from the foundations to the state-of-the-art in the field, including applications to black holes and the cosmology near the Big Bang.During the past two decades the gravitational asymptotic safety scenario has undergone a major transition from an exotic possibility to a serious contender for a realistic theory of quantum gravity. It aims at a mathematically consistent quantum description of the gravitational interaction and the geometry of spacetime within the realm of quantum field theory, which keeps its predictive power at the highest energies. This volume provides a self-contained pedagogical introduction to asymptotic safety, and introduces the functional renormalization group techniques used in its investigation, along with the requisite computational techniques. The foundational chapters are followed by an accessible summary of the results obtained so far. It is the first detailed exposition of asymptotic safety, providing a unique introduction to quantum gravity and it assumes no previous familiarity with the renormalization group. It serves as an important resource for both practising researchers and graduate students entering this maturing field.1. A quantum field theory of gravity; 2. The functional renormalization group; 3. The asymptotic safety mechanism; 4. A funl3G