A major problem of quantum field theory in curved spacetime,
and quantum gravity more generally, is the lack of sufficient
observational and experimental guidance. To address this issue I am
proposing to explore various phenomena of semi-classical gravity and
quantum gravity in table-top experiments. The overall programme is
based on the existence of analogue gravity models for semi-classical
quantum gravity, demonstrating that certain effects predicted within
quantum field theory in curved spacetimes can be mimicked in
easy-to-access physical systems, such as fluids and superfluids. In
addition, I will explore the possibility of adapting the general
principles underlying analogue gravity models to full quantum gravity,
combining tools and concepts from quantum information theory with
discrete quantum gravity. In contrast to many other proposals in
quantum gravity, the project objectives are not only theoretical
(analytical and numerical studies), but also of experimental  nature.
The specific scientific goals are to study the robustness and
universality of (rotating) black hole phenomena in water channel
flows, cosmological particle production in Bose-Einstein condensate,
and the emergence of a smooth geometry as an ensemble average of
binary encodings of triangulated manifolds.