Euclidean quantum field theory: Curved spacetimes and gauge fields

This thesis presents a new formulation of quantum field theory (QFT) on curved spacetimes, with definite advantages over previous formulations, and an introduction to the millennium prize problem on four-dimensional gauge theory. Our constructions are completely rigorous, making QFT on curved spacetimes into a subfield of mathematics, and we achieve the first analytic control over nonperturbative aspects of interacting theories on curved spacetimes. The success of Euclidean path integrals to capture nonperturbative aspects of QFT has been striking. The Euclidean path integral is the most accurate method of calculating strong-coupling effects in gauge theory (such as glueball masses). Euclidean methods are also useful in the study of black holes, as evidenced by the Hartle-Hawking calculation of black-hole radiance. From a mathematical point of view, on flat spacetimes the Euclidean functional integral provides the most elegant method of constructing examples of interacting relativistic field theories. Yet until now, the incredibly-useful Euclidean path integral had never been given a definitive mathematical treatment on curved backgrounds. It is our aim to rectify this situation. Along the way, we discover that the Dirac operator on an arbitrary Clifford bundle has a resolvent kernel which is the Laplace transform of a positive measure. In studying spacetime symmetries, we discover a new way of constructing unitary representations of noncompact Lie groups. We also define and explore an interesting notion of convergence for Laplacians. The same mathematical framework applies to scalar fields, fermions, and gauge fields. The later chapters are devoted to gauge theory. We present a rigorous, self-contained introduction to the subject, aimed at mathematicians and using the language of modern mathematics, with a view towards nonperturbative renormalization in four dimensions. The latter ideas are unfinished. A completion of the final chapter would imply the construction of a non-trivial interacting theory in four dimensions. We merely give some idea of how these important questions can be addressed.