The response of a Unruh-deWitt particle detector in a thin-shell wormhole spacetime

Abstract

We investigate the transition probability of a Unruh-deWitt particle detector evolving in flat space and in a wormhole spacetime, in various scenarios. In Minkowski space, we look at the response of the detector on trajectories having discontinuities and rapid variations, as well as the effect of finite-time coupling. It is found that these features induce spurious oscillations in the probability and rate of transition. At large times the oscillations are damped and the probability tends to a constant value. Next, we look at the response of an inertial detector on a radial trajectory that passes through a thin-shell wormhole. After finding the appropriate modes, we look at the renormalized detector response, defined by subtracting the flat space analogues from the partial probabilities. The resulting curve has a peak around the wormhole throat followed by a period of damped oscillations, before stabilizing to a constant value. This is very similar to the flat space results, which is surprising given that in this case the trajectory is continuous. The features of the transition probability are due entirely to the nontrivial topology induced by the wormhole.