Nonlocal quantum gravity and M-theory

Abstract

We construct a ultraviolet completion of the bosonic sector of 11-dimensional supergravity motivated by string field theory. We start from a general class of theories characterized by an entire nonpolynomial form factor which allows one to avoid new poles in the propagator and improves the high-energy behavior of the loops amplitudes. Comparing these models with effective string field theory, a unique form factor is selected out. In view of this, we modify 10-dimensional supergravity and finally get a ultraviolet completion of 11-dimensional supergravity by an oxidation process. The result is a candidate for a finite and unitary particle-field limit of M-theory.

16 pages, 1 figure. v2: title changed, discussion improved and extended in Secs. I, VI and VII, new Sec. V on massive states added, typos corrected (including different sign conventions in several equations), results unchanged