Group field theory as the microscopic description of the quantum\n spacetime fluid: a new perspective on the continuum in quantum gravity

We introduce the group field theory (GFT) formalism for non-perturbative\nquantum gravity, and present it as a potential unifying framework for several\nother quantum gravity approaches, i.e. loop quantum gravity and simplicial\nquantum gravity ones. We then argue in favor of and present in detail what we\nbelieve is a new GFT perspective on the emergence of continuum spacetime from\ndiscrete quantum structures, based on the idea of quantum space as a condensed\nmatter system. We put forward a more specific, albeit still very much\ntentative, proposal for the relevant phase of the GFT corresponding to the\ncontinuum: a Bose-Einstein condensate of GFT quanta. Finally, we sketch how the\nproposal may be realised and its effective dynamics could be extracted in the\nGFT setting and compared with continuum gravity theories.\n