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Quantum Black Holes Are Tied to D‐Branes and Strings

MAR 01, 1997
Theorists have used string theory and nonperturbative objects known as D‐branes to count the quantum microstates of black holes. This major step forward in our understanding of quantum gravity may resolve the longstanding “paradox” of information loss in black hole evaporation.
Graham P. Collins

General relativity and quantum mechanics, two of the monumental achievements of 20th‐century physics, verified by experiment to unprecedented levels of accuracy, have long resisted physicists’ attempts to combine them in a single comprehensive theory. In recent years much research in this area has focused on one central conundrum: how to describe the quantum physics of black holes.

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This Content Appeared In
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Volume 50, Number 3

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