Quantum-Gravitational Diffusion and Stochastic Fluctuations in the Velocity of Light

We argue that quantum-gravitational fluctuations in the space-time background give the vacuum non-trivial optical properties that include diffusion and consequent uncertainties in the arrival times of photons, causing stochastic fluctuations in the velocity of light in vacuo. Our proposal is motivated within a Liouville string formulation of quantum gravity that also suggests a frequency-dependent refractive index of the particle vacuum. We construct an explicit realization by treating photon propagation through quantum excitations of D-brane fluctuations in the space-time foam. These are described by higher-genus string effects, that lead to stochastic fluctuations in couplings, and hence in the velocity of light. We discuss the possibilities of constraining or measuring photon diffusion in vacuo via -ray observations of distant astrophysical sources.