Abstract

Gravity and quantum mechanics are expected to unify at the Planck scale described by an exceedingly large energy of 10 19 GeV. This regime is far from the reach of the highest energy colliders, but tests of fundamental symmetries provide an avenue to explore physics at this scale from the low energy world. Proposed theories of quantum gravity suggest possible spontaneous breaking of Lorentz and CPT symmetry that have so far been unobserved. This thesis presents a test of a Lorentz-and CPT-violating background field constant across the solar system coupling to the neutron spin. A comagnetometer with polarized atomic vapors K and 3 He suppresses magnetic fields but remains sensitive to non-magnetic spin couplings. In a tabletop setup, the comagnetometer measures the equatorial components to be [special characters omitted]=(0.1±1.6)× 10-33 GeV and [special characters omitted]=(2.5±1.6)× 10-33 …

Date

2011

Authors

Justin Matthew Brown

Institution

Princeton university