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Nonperturbative effects in TT¯-deformed conformal field theories: A toy model for Planckian physics

Shinji Hirano1,2,* and Vinayak Raj1,†

  • *Contact author: shinji.hirano@gmail.com
  • †Contact author: vinayak.hep.th@gmail.com
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Phys. Rev. D 114, 026005 – Published 6 July, 2026

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/4yg6-4dtv

Abstract

We propose a nonperturbative completion of two-point correlators in TT¯-deformed conformal field theories (CFTs) and analyze their behavior at distance scales shorter than the fundamental length scale set by the TT¯ deformation. Building on the interpretation of the TT¯ deformation as a coupling to two-dimensional quantum gravity with a unique built-in length scale, we advance the study of TT¯-deformed CFTs as a toy model for Planckian physics. As we probe shorter distances, trans-Planckian oscillations are followed by a super-Planckian regime in which correlations are typically suppressed by geometric randomness, in contrast to the power-law growth characteristic of CFTs. Moreover, their dependence on distance becomes exponentially weaker, suggesting that the underlying geometric structure has been largely erased—a behavior broadly consistent with expectations for quantum spacetime in this regime.

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Phys. Rev. D 114, 026005– Published 6 July, 2026
  • Received 1 August 2025
  • Accepted 11 June 2026
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