Emergence of stringlike physics from Lorentz invariance in loop quantum gravity

We consider a quantum field theory on a spherically symmetric quantum spacetime described by loop quantum gravity. The spin network description of spacetime in such a theory leads to equations for the quantum field that are discrete. We show that to avoid significant violations of Lorentz invariance, one needs to consider specific nonlocal interactions in the quantum field theory similar to those that appear in string theory. This is the first sign that loop quantum gravity places restrictions on the type of matter considered, and points to a connection with string theory physics.