Phenomenology of Space-time Imperfection I: Nonlocal Defects

Abstract

If space-time is emergent from a fundamentally non-geometric theory it will generically be left with defects. Such defects need not respect the locality that emerges with the background. Here, we develop a phenomenological model that parameterizes the effects of nonlocal defects on the propagation of particles. In this model, Lorentz-invariance is preserved on the average. We derive constraints on the density of defects from various experiments.