Limits to Seeing High-Redshift Galaxies Due to Planck-Scale-Induced Blurring

Abstract

In the last decade or so there has been debate over the possibility that the fuzzy quantum nature of spacetime might decohere wavefronts emanating from very distant sources. Consequences of that could be "blurred" or "faded" images of compact structures in galaxies, primarily at z>1 for their emitted X-rays and gamma-rays, but perhaps even in ultraviolet through optical light at higher redshift. So far there are only inconclusive hints of this from z~4 active-galactic nucleii and gamma-ray bursts viewed with Fermi and Hubble Space Telescope. If correct though, that would impose a significant, fundamental resolution limit for galaxies out to z~8 in the era of the James Webb Space Telescope and the next generation of ground-based telescopes using adaptive optics.