arXiv subjects

A. J. M. Medved

Publications and source records attributed to A. J. M. Medved.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

arXiv2018

$N$-point functions of strongly coupled fluids dual to generalized higher-derivative theories of gravity

We calculate the connected stress-tensor correlation functions that are dual to a certain class of graviton scattering amplitudes in an asymptotically anti-de Sitter, black brane spacetime. This is a continuation of a previous study in which one-particle-irreducible amplitudes were calculated for arbitrarily higher-derivative gravity in a particular kinetic regime of high energies and large scattering angles. The utility of this regime is twofold: It is particularly well suited for translating scattering amplitudes into the language of the gauge theory and it emphasizes the contributions from higher-derivative corrections (which would otherwise be perturbatively suppressed). Using the new results, we show how it could be possible to identify, experimentally, the gravitational dual to a strongly coupled fluid such as the quark-gluon plasma.

hep-th↗

arXiv2018

Emergent horizon, Hawking radiation and chaos in the collapsed polymer model of a black hole

We have proposed that the interior of a macroscopic Schwarzschild black hole (BH) consists of highly excited, long, closed, interacting strings and, as such, can be modeled as a collapsed polymer. It was previously shown that the scaling relations of the collapsed-polymer model agree with those of the BH. The current paper further substantiates this proposal with an investigation into some of its dynamical consequences. In particular, we show that the model predicts, without relying on gravitational effects, an emergent horizon. We further show that the horizon fluctuates quantum mechanically as it should and that the strength of the fluctuations is inversely proportional to the BH entropy. It is then demonstrated that the emission of Hawking radiation is realized microscopically by the quantum-induced escape of small pieces of string, with the rate of escape and the energy per emitted piece both parametrically matching the Hawking temperature. We also show, using standard methods from statistical mechanics and chaos theory, how our model accounts for some other known properties of BHs. These include the accepted results for the scrambling time and the viscosity-to-entropy ratio, which in our model apply not only at the horizon but throughout the BH interior.

hep-th↗

arXiv2018

The state of Hawking radiation is non-classical

We show that the state of the Hawking radiation emitted from a large Schwarzschild black hole (BH) deviates significantly from a classical state, in spite of its apparent thermal nature. For this state, the occupation numbers of single modes of massless asymptotic fields, such as photons, gravitons and possibly neutrinos, are small and, as a result, their relative fluctuations are large. The occupation numbers of massive fields are much smaller and suppressed beyond even the expected Boltzmann suppression. It follows that this type of thermal state cannot be viewed as classical or even semiclassical. We substantiate this claim by showing that, in a state with low occupation numbers, physical observables have large quantum fluctuations and, as such, cannot be faithfully described by a mean-field or by a WKB-like semiclassical state. Since the evolution of the BH is unitary, our results imply that the state of the BH interior must also be non-classical when described in terms of the asymptotic fields. We show that such a non-classical interior cannot be described in terms of a semiclassical geometry, even though the average curvature is sub-Planckian.

hep-th↗

arXiv2017

Discovering the interior of black holes

The detection of gravitational waves (GWs) from black hole (BH) mergers provides an inroad toward probing the interior of astrophysical BHs. The general-relativistic description of the BH interior is that of empty spacetime with a (possibly) singular core. Recently, however, the hypothesis that the BH interior does not exist has been gaining traction, as it provides a means for resolving the BH information-loss problem. Here, we propose a simple method for answering the following question: Does the BH interior exist and, if so, does it contain some distribution of matter or is it mostly empty? Our proposal is premised on the idea that, similar to the case of relativistic, ultra-compact stars, any BH-like object whose interior has some matter distribution should support fluid modes in addition to the conventional spacetime modes. In particular, the Coriolis-induced Rossby (r-) modes, whose spectrum is mostly insensitive to the composition of the interior matter, should be a universal feature of such BH-like objects. In fact, the frequency and damping time of these modes are determined by only the object's mass and speed of rotation. The r-modes oscillate at a lower frequency, decay at a slower rate and produce weaker GWs than do modes of the spacetime class. Hence, they imprint a model-insensitive signature of a non-empty interior in the GW spectrum resulting from a BH merger. We find that future GW detectors, such as Advanced LIGO with its design sensitivity, have the potential of detecting such r-modes if the amount of GWs leaking out quantum mechanically from the interior of a BH-like object is sufficiently large.

gr-qc↗

arXiv2017

Quantum hair of black holes out of equilibrium

Classically, the black hole (BH) horizon is completely opaque, hiding any clues about the state and very existence of its interior. Quantum mechanically and in equilibrium, the situation is not much different: Hawking radiation will now be emitted, but it comes out at an extremely slow rate, is thermal to a high degree of accuracy and thus carries a minimal amount of information about the quantum state within the BH. Here, it is shown that the situation is significantly different when a quantum BH is out of equilibrium. We argue that the BH can then emit "supersized" Hawking radiation with a much larger amplitude than that emitted in equilibrium. The result is a new type of quantum hair that can reveal the state and composition of the BH interior to an external observer. Moreover, the frequency and amplitude of the new hair can be explained by the observer without invoking any new physical principles. The new hair decays at a parametrically slow rate in comparison to the Schwarzschild time scale and can be detected through the emission of gravitational waves (and possibly other types of waves); for example, during and after a BH-merger event. The current discussion is motivated by a previous analysis, in the context of a recently proposed polymer model for the BH interior, that implies emissions just like those described here. We expect, however, that the new hair is a model-independent property of quantum BHs.

hep-th↗

arXiv2017

When black holes collide: Probing the interior composition by the spectrum of ringdown modes and emitted gravitational waves

The merger of colliding black holes (BHs) should lead to the production of ringdown or quasinormal modes (QNMs), which may very well be sensitive to the state of the interior. We put this idea to the test with a recent proposal that the interior of a BH consists of a bound state of highly excited, long, closed, interacting strings; figuratively, a collapsed polymer. We show that such BHs do indeed have a distinct signature in their QNM spectrum: A new class of modes whose frequencies are parametrically lower than the lowest-frequency mode of a classical BH and whose damping times are parametrically longer. The reason for the appearance of the new modes is that our model contains another scale, the string length, which is parametrically larger than the Planck length. This distinction between the collapsed-polymer model and general-relativistic BHs could be made with gravitational-wave observations and offers a means for potentially measuring the strength of the coupling in string theory. For example, GW150914 already allows us to probe the strength of the string coupling near the regime which is predicted by the unification of the gravitational and gauge-theory couplings. We also derive bounds on the amplitude of the collapsed-polymer QNMs that can be placed by current and future gravitational-wave observations.

gr-qc↗

arXiv2017

Graviton multi-point amplitudes for higher-derivative gravity in anti-de Sitter space

We calculate graviton multi-point amplitudes in an anti-de Sitter black brane background for higher-derivative gravity of arbitrary order in numbers of derivatives. The calculations are performed using tensor graviton modes in a particular regime of comparatively high energies and large scattering angles. The regime simplifies the calculations but, at the same time, is well suited for translating these results into the language of the dually related gauge theory. After considering theories of up to eight derivatives, we generalize to even higher-derivative theories by constructing a "basis" for the relevant scattering amplitudes. This construction enables one to find the basic form of the n-point amplitude for arbitrary n and any number of derivatives. Additionally, using the four-point amplitudes for six and eight-derivative gravity, we re-express the scattering properties in terms of the Mandelstam variables.

hep-th↗

arXiv2017

Realistic clocks for a Universe without time

There are a number of problematic features within the current treatment of time in physical theories, including the "timelessness" of the Universe as encapsulated by the Wheeler-DeWitt equation. This paper considers one particular investigation into resolving this issue; a conditional probability interpretation that was first proposed by Page and Wooters. Those authors addressed the apparent timelessness by subdividing a faux Universe into two entangled parts, "the clock" and "the remainder of the Universe", and then synchronizing the effective dynamics of the two subsystems by way of conditional probabilities. The current treatment focuses on the possibility of using a (somewhat) realistic clock system; namely, a coherent-state description of a damped harmonic oscillator. This clock proves to be consistent with the conditional probability interpretation; in particular, a standard evolution operator is identified with the position of the clock playing the role of time for the rest of the Universe. Restrictions on the damping factor are determined and, perhaps contrary to expectations, the optimal choice of clock is not necessarily one of minimal damping.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2017

Black holes and information: A new take on an old paradox

Interest in the black hole information paradox has recently been catalyzed by the newer "firewall" argument. The crux of the updated argument is that previous solutions which relied on observer complementarity are in violation of the quantum condition of monogamy of entanglement; with the prescribed remedy being to discard the equivalence principle in favor of an energy barrier (or firewall) at the black hole horizon. Differing points of view have been put forward, including the "ER=EPR" counterargument and the final-state solution, both of which can be viewed as potential resolutions to the apparent conflict between quantum monogamy and Einstein equivalence. After reviewing these recent developments, this paper argues that the ER=EPR and final-state solutions can -- thanks to observer complementarity -- be seen as the same resolution of the paradox but from two different perspectives: inside and outside the black hole.

hep-th↗

arXiv2016

Black holes as collapsed polymers

We propose that a large Schwarzschild black hole (BH) is a bound state of highly excited, long, closed strings at the Hagedorn temperature. The size of the bound state is smaller than the string random-walk scale and determined dynamically by the string attractive interactions. It is further proposed that the effective free-energy density of the bound state should be expressed as a function of its entropy density. For a macroscopic BH, the free-energy density contains only linear and quadratic terms, in analogy with that of a collapsed polymer when expressed as a function of the polymer concentration. Using the effective free energy, we derive scaling relations for the entropy, energy and size of the bound state and show that these agree with the scaling relations of the BH; in particular, with the area law for the BH entropy. The area law originates from the inverse scaling of the effective temperature with the bound-state radius. We also find that the energy density of the bound state is equal to its pressure.

hep-th↗

arXiv2015

Teleporting entanglement during black hole evaporation

The unitary evaporation of a black hole (BH) in an initially pure state must lead to the eventual purification of the emitted radiation. It follows that the late radiation has to be entangled with the early radiation and, as a consequence, the entanglement among the Hawking pair partners has to decrease continuously from maximal to vanishing during the BH's life span. Starting from the basic premise that both the horizon radius and the center of mass of a finite-mass BH are fluctuating quantum mechanically, we show how this process is realized. First, it is shown that the horizon fluctuations induce a small amount of variance in the total linear momentum of each created pair. This is in contrast to the case of an infinitely massive BH, for which the total momentum of the produced pair vanishes exactly on account of momentum conservation. This variance leads to a random recoil of the BH during each emission and, as a result, the center of mass of the BH undergoes a quantum random walk. Consequently, the uncertainty in its momentum grows as the square root of the number of emissions. We then show that this uncertainty controls the amount of deviation from maximal entanglement of the produced pairs and that this deviation is determined by the ratio of the cumulative number of emitted particles to the initial BH entropy. Thus, the interplay between the horizon and center-of-mass fluctuations provides a mechanism for teleporting entanglement from the pair partners to the BH and the emitted radiation.

hep-th↗

arXiv2015

Density matrix of black hole radiation

Hawking's model of black hole evaporation is not unitary and leads to a mixed density matrix for the emitted radiation, while the Page model describes a unitary evaporation process in which the density matrix evolves from an almost thermal state to a pure state. We compare a recently proposed model of semiclassical black hole evaporation to the two established models. In particular, we study the density matrix of the outgoing radiation and determine how the magnitude of the off-diagonal corrections differs for the three frameworks. For Hawking's model, we find power-law corrections to the two-point functions that induce exponentially suppressed corrections to the off-diagonal elements of the full density matrix. This verifies that the Hawking result is correct to all orders in perturbation theory and also allows one to express the full density matrix in terms of the single-particle density matrix. We then consider the semiclassical theory for which the corrections, being non-perturbative from an effective field-theory perspective, are much less suppressed and grow monotonically in time. In this case, the Rényi entropy for the outgoing radiation is shown to grow linearly at early times; but this growth slows down and the entropy eventually starts to decrease at the Page time. In addition to comparing models, we emphasize the distinction between the state of the radiation emitted from a black hole, which is highly quantum, and that of the radiation emitted from a typical classical black body at the same temperature.

hep-th↗

arXiv2015

Quantum state of the black hole interior

If a black hole (BH) is initially in an approximately pure state and it evaporates by a unitary process, then the emitted radiation will be in a highly quantum state. As the purifier of this radiation, the state of the BH interior must also be in some highly quantum state. So that, within the interior region, the mean-field approximation cannot be valid and the state of the BH cannot be described by some semiclassical metric. On this basis, we model the state of the BH interior as a collection of a large number of excitations that are packed into closely spaced but single-occupancy energy levels; a sort-of "Fermi sea" of all light-enough particles. This highly quantum state is surrounded by a semiclassical region that lies close to the horizon and has a non-vanishing energy density. It is shown that such a state looks like a BH from the outside and decays via gravitational pair production in the near-horizon region at a rate that agrees with the Hawking rate. We also consider the fate of a classical object that has passed through to the BH interior and show that, once it has crossed over the near-horizon threshold, the object meets its demise extremely fast. This result cannot be attributed to a "firewall", as the trauma to the in-falling object only begins after it has passed through the near-horizon region and enters a region where semiclassical spacetime ends but the energy density is still parametrically smaller than Planckian.

hep-th↗

arXiv2015

Constraints on the quantum state of pairs produced by semiclassical black holes

The pair-production process for a black hole (BH) is discussed within the framework of a recently proposed semiclassical model of BH evaporation. Our emphasis is on how the requirements of unitary evolution and strong subadditivity act to constrain the state of the produced pairs and their entanglement with the already emitted BH radiation. We find that the state of the produced pairs is indeed strongly constrained but that the semiclassical model is consistent with all requirements. We are led to the following picture: Initially, the pairs are produced in a state of nearly maximal entanglement amongst the partners, with a parametrically small entanglement between each positive-energy partner and the outgoing radiation, similar to Hawking's model. But, as the BH evaporation progresses past the Page time, each positive-energy partner has a stronger entanglement with the outgoing radiation and, consequently, is less strongly entangled with its negative-energy partner. We present some evidence that this pattern of entanglement does not require non-local interactions, only EPR-like non-local correlations.

hep-th↗

arXiv2015

Falling through the black hole horizon

We consider the fate of a small classical object, a "stick", as it falls through the horizon of a large black hole (BH). Classically, the equivalence principle dictates that the stick is affected by small tidal forces, and Hawking's quantum-mechanical model of BH evaporation makes essentially the same prediction. If, on the other hand, the BH horizon is surrounded by a "firewall", the stick will be consumed as it falls through. We have recently extended Hawking's model by taking into account the quantum fluctuations of the geometry and the classical back-reaction of the emitted particles. Here, we calculate the strain exerted on the falling stick for our model. The strain depends on the near-horizon state of the Hawking pairs. We find that, after the Page time when the state of the pairs deviates significantly from maximal entanglement (as required by unitarity), the induced strain in our semiclassical model is still parametrically small. This is because the number of the disentangled pairs is parametrically smaller than the BH entropy. A firewall does, however, appear if the number of disentangled pairs near the horizon is of order of the BH entropy, as implicitly assumed in previous discussions in the literature.

hep-th↗

arXiv2014

How Black Holes Burn

We present a calculation of the rate of information release from a Schwarzschild BH. We have recently extended Hawking's theory of black hole (BH) evaporation to account for quantum fluctuations of the background geometry, as well as for back-reaction and time-dependence effects. Our main result has been a two-point function matrix for the radiation that consists of Hawking's thermal matrix plus off-diagonal corrections that are initially small and become more important as the evaporation proceeds. Here, we show that, if the phases and amplitudes of the radiation matrix are recorded over the lifetime of the BH, then the radiation purifies in a continuous way. We conjecture that our results establish the maximal rate at which information can be released from a semiclassical BH, to be contrasted with the minimal rate that was predicted by Page on the basis of generic unitarity arguments. When the phases of the radiation matrix are not tracked, we show that it purifies only parametrically close to the end of the BH evaporation and does so extremely fast. Our main technical tool in the quantitative treatment of this purification is the purity of the radiation matrix and, its inverse, the participation ratio. These can be related to the Renyi entropy of the density matrix of the emitted radiation.

hep-th↗

arXiv2014

Horizons of semiclassical black holes are cold

We calculate, using our recently proposed semiclassical framework, the quantum state of the Hawking pairs that are produced during the evaporation of a black hole (BH). Our framework adheres to the standard rules of quantum mechanics and incorporates the quantum fluctuations of the collapsing shell spacetime in Hawking's original calculation, while accounting for back-reaction effects. We argue that the negative-energy Hawking modes need to be regularly integrated out; and so these are effectively subsumed by the BH and, as a result, the number of coherent negative-energy modes $N_{coh}$ at any given time is parametrically smaller than the total number of the Hawking particles $N_{total}$ emitted during the lifetime of the BH. We find that $N_{coh}$ is determined by the width of the BH wavefunction and scales as the square root of the BH entropy. We also find that the coherent negative-energy modes are strongly entangled with their positive-energy partners. Previously, we have found that $N_{coh}$ is also the number of coherent outgoing particles and that information can be continually transferred to the outgoing radiation at a rate set by $N_{coh}$. Our current results show that, while the BH is semiclassical, information can be released without jeopardizing the nearly maximal inside-out entanglement and imply that the state of matter near the horizon is approximately the vacuum. The BH firewall proposal, on the other hand, is that the state of matter near the horizon deviates substantially from the vacuum, starting at the Page time. We find that, under the usual assumptions for justifying the formation of a firewall, one does indeed form at the Page time. However, the possible loophole lies in the implicit assumption that the number of strongly entangled pairs can be of the same order of $N_{total}$.

hep-th↗

arXiv2014

Quelling the concerns of EPR and Bell

We begin with a review of the famous thought experiment that was proposed by Einstein, Podolsky and Rosen (EPR) and mathematically formulated by Bell; the outcomes of which challenge the completeness of quantum mechanics and the locality of Nature. We then suggest a reinterpretation of the EPR experiment that utilizes observer complementarity; a concept from quantum gravity which allows spatially separated observers to have their own, independent reference frames. The resulting picture provides a self-consistent resolution of the situation that does not jeopardize causality nor unitarity, nor does it resort to ''spooky'' (non-local) interactions. Our conclusion is that EPR and Bell rely on an overly strong definition of locality that is in conflict with fundamental physics.

quant-ph↗