arXiv subjects

Leonardo Modesto

Publications and source records attributed to Leonardo Modesto.

At least 73 records · Page 4Linked to original sources

arXiv2018

A Firepoint at the Black Hole Singularity

In his original derivation, Hawking showed that a Schwarzschild black hole is unstable at quantum level and it evolves to a final thermal mixed state violating unitarity. There are some attempts to solve this information paradox based on a high energy surface located at the black hole event horizon: the firewall. In the wake of these proposals, we here propose the singularity itself as a "firepoint" capable to break the entanglement between the "int" and the "out" states created through the Hawking process. In this paper the singularity takes active part in the information paradox in two similar ways. In the first way, the singularity, coming in contact with the the "int" state, produces a pure state outside the horizon, but it violates causality allowing people inside the black hole to send signals to the outside. The second way consists of a map that breaks the entanglement between the interior and exterior of the black hole still using the singularity yet without violating causality. The monogamy theorem is not violated whether in the first where the "out" radiation state is rendered pure directly or in the second way where the Page idea is made possible again to solve the information loss problem.

hep-th↗

arXiv2018

Causality in Nonlocal Gravity

We study the causal structure of a class of weakly nonlocal gravitational theories (eventually coupled to matter) that are compatible with perturbative unitarity and finiteness at quantum level. In particular, we show that in nonlocal quantum gravity a Shapiro's time advance never occurs. Moreover, we provide a recipe to construct a general ultraviolet complete gravitational theory coupled to matter (with or without supersymmetry) compatible with causality. Therefore, nonlocal gravity is consistent with causality, as well as string theory.

hep-th↗

arXiv2018

Unattainable extended spacetime regions in conformal gravity

The Janis-Newman-Winicour metric is a solution of Einstein's gravity minimally coupled to a real massless scalar field. The $γ$-metric is instead a vacuum solution of Einstein's gravity. These spacetimes have no horizon and possess a naked singularity at a finite value of the radial coordinate, where curvature invariants diverge and the spacetimes are geodetically incomplete. In this paper, we reconsider these solutions in the framework of conformal gravity and we show that it is possible to solve the spacetime singularities with a suitable choice of the conformal factor. Now curvature invariants remain finite over the whole spacetime. Massive particles never reach the previous singular surface and massless particles can never do it with a finite value of their affine parameter. Our results support the conjecture according to which conformal gravity can fix the singularity problem that plagues Einstein's gravity.

gr-qc↗

arXiv2018

Formation and evaporation of an electrically charged black hole in conformal gravity

Extending previous work on the formation and the evaporation of black holes in conformal gravity, in the present paper we study the gravitational collapse of a spherically symmetric and electrically charged thin shell of radiation. The process creates a singularity-free black hole. Assuming that in the evaporation process the charge $Q$ is constant, the final product of the evaporation is an extremal remnant with $M=Q$, which is reached in an infinite amount of time. We also discuss the issue of singularity and thermodynamics of black holes in Weyl's conformal gravity.

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arXiv2018

Finite conformal quantum gravity and spacetime singularities

We show that a class of finite quantum non-local gravitational theories is conformally invariant at classical as well as at quantum level. This is actually a range of conformal anomaly-free theories in the spontaneously broken phase of the Weyl symmetry. At classical level we show how the Weyl conformal invariance is able to tame all the spacetime singularities that plague not only Einstein gravity, but also local and weakly non-local higher derivative theories. The latter statement is proved by a singularity theorem that applies to a large class of weakly non-local theories. Therefore, we are entitled to look for a solution of the spacetime singularity puzzle in a missed symmetry of nature, namely the Weyl conformal symmetry. Following the seminal paper by Narlikar and Kembhavi, we provide an explicit construction of singularity-free black hole exact solutions in a class of conformally invariant theories.

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arXiv2017

Universality of the Unruh effect

In this paper we prove the universal nature of the Unruh effect in a general class of weakly non-local field theories. At the same time we solve the tension between two conflicting claims published in literature. Our universality statement is based on two independent computations based on the canonical formulation as well as path integral formulation of the quantum theory.

gr-qc↗

arXiv2017

Black hole evaporation in conformal gravity

We study the formation and the evaporation of a spherically symmetric black hole in conformal gravity. From the collapse of a spherically symmetric thin shell of radiation, we find a singularity-free non-rotating black hole. This black hole has the same Hawking temperature as a Schwarzschild black hole with the same mass, and it completely evaporates either in a finite or in an infinite time, depending on the ensemble. We consider the analysis both in the canonical and in the micro-canonical statistical ensembles. Last, we discuss the corresponding Penrose diagram of this physical process.

gr-qc↗

arXiv2017

Stability of Schwarzschild singularity in non-local gravity

In a previous work, it was shown that all Ricci-flat spacetimes are exact solutions for a large class of non-local gravitational theories. Here we prove that, for a subclass of non-local theories, the Schwarzschild singularity is stable under linear perturbations. Thus, non-locality may be not enough to cure all the singularities of general relativity. Finally, we show that the Schwarzschild solution can be generated by the gravitational collapse of a thin shell of radiation.

gr-qc↗

arXiv2017

Spacetime completeness of non-singular black holes in conformal gravity

We explicitly prove that the Weyl conformal symmetry solves the black hole singularity problem, otherwise unavoidable in a generally covariant local or non-local gravitational theory. Moreover, we yield explicit examples of local and non-local theories enjoying Weyl and diffeomorphism symmetry (in short co-covariant theories). Following the seminal paper by Narlikar and Kembhavi, we provide an explicit construction of singularity-free spherically symmetric and axi-symmetric exact solutions for black hole spacetimes conformally equivalent to the Schwarzschild or the Kerr spacetime. We first check the absence of divergences in the Kretschmann invariant for the rescaled metrics. Afterwords, we show that the new types of black holes are geodesically complete and linked by a Newman-Janis transformation just as in standard general relativity (based on Einstein-Hilbert action). Furthermore, we argue that no massive or massless particles can reach the former Schwarzschild singularity or touch the former Kerr ring singularity in a finite amount of their proper time or of their affine parameter. Finally, we discuss the Raychaudhuri equation in a co-covariant theory and we show that the expansion parameter for congruences of both types of geodesics (for massless and massive particles) never reaches minus infinity. Actually, the null geodesics become parallel at the $r=0$ point in the Schwarzschild spacetime (the origin) and the focusing of geodesics is avoided. The arguments of regularity of curvature invariants, geodesic completeness, and finiteness of geodesics' expansion parameter ensure us that we are dealing with singularity-free and geodesically-complete black hole spacetimes.

gr-qc↗

arXiv2017

Testing conformal gravity with astrophysical black holes

Weyl conformal symmetry can solve the problem the spacetime singularities present in Einstein's gravity. In a recent paper, two of us have found a singularity-free rotating black hole solution in conformal gravity. In addition to the mass $M$ and the spin angular momentum $J$ of the black hole, the new solution has a new parameter, $L$, which here we consider to be proportional to the black hole mass. Since the solution is conformally equivalent to the Kerr metric, photon trajectories are unchanged, while the structure of an accretion disk around a black hole is affected by the value of the parameter $L$. In this paper, we show that X-ray data of astrophysical black holes require $L/M < 1.2$.

gr-qc↗

arXiv2016

Lee-Wick Black Holes

We derive and study an approximate static vacuum solution generated by a point-like source in a higher derivative gravitational theory with a pair of complex conjugate ghosts. The gravitational theory is local and characterized by a high derivative operator compatible with Lee-Wick unitarity. In particular, the tree-level two-point function only shows a pair of complex conjugate poles besides the massless spin two graviton. We show that singularity-free black holes exist when the mass of the source $M$ exceeds a critical value $M_{\rm crit}$. For $M > M_{\rm crit}$ the spacetime structure is characterized by an outer event horizon and an inner Cauchy horizon, while for $M = M_{\rm crit}$ we have an extremal black hole with vanishing Hawking temperature. The evaporation process leads to a remnant that approaches the zero-temperature extremal black hole state in an infinite amount of time.

gr-qc↗

arXiv2016

Occurrence of exact $R^2$ inflation in non-local UV-complete gravity

The $R+R^2$, shortly named "$R^2$" ("Starobinsky") inflationary model, represents a fully consistent example of a one-parameter inflationary scenario. This model has a "graceful exit" from inflation and provides a mechanism for subsequent creation and final thermalization of the standard matter. Moreover, it produces a very good fit of the observed spectrum of primordial perturbations. In the present paper we show explicitly that the $R^2$ inflationary spacetime is an exact solution of a range of weakly non-local (quasi-polynomial) gravitational theories, which provide an ultraviolet completion of the $R^2$ theory. These theories are ghost-free, super-renormalizable or finite at quantum level, and perturbatively unitary. Their spectrum consists of the graviton and the scalaron that is responsible for driving the inflation. Notably, any further extension of the spectrum leads to propagating ghost degrees of freedom. We are aimed at presenting a detailed construction of such theories in the so called Weyl basis. Further, we give a special account to the cosmological implications of this theory by considering perturbations during inflation. The highlight of the non-local model is the prediction of a modified, in comparison to a local $R^2$ model, value for the ratio of tensor and scalar power spectra $r$, depending on the parameters of the theory. The relevant parameters are under control to be successfully confronted with existing observational data. Furthermore, the modified $r$ can surely meet future observational constraints.

hep-th↗

arXiv2016

Finite Conformal Quantum Gravity and Nonsingular Spacetimes

We explicitly prove that a class of finite quantum gravitational theories (in odd as well as in even dimension) is actually a range of anomaly-free conformally invariant theories in the spontaneously broken phase of the conformal Weyl symmetry. At classical level we show how the Weyl conformal invariance is likely able to tame the spacetime singularities that plague not only Einstein gravity, but also local and weakly non-local higher derivative theories. This latter statement is rigorously proved by a singularity theorem that applies to a large class of weakly non-local theories. Following the seminal paper by Narlikar and Kembhavi, we provide an explicit construction of singularity-free black hole exact solutions conformally equivalent to the Schwarzschild metric. Furthermore, we show that the FRW cosmological solutions and the Belinski, Khalatnikov, Lifshitz (BKL) spacetimes, which exactly solve the classical equations of motion, are conformally equivalent to regular spacetimes. Finally, we prove that the Oppenheimer-Volkov gravitational collapse is a an exact (singularity-free) solution of the non-local conformally invariant theory compatible with the bounce paradigm.

hep-th↗

arXiv2016

Classical and Quantum Nonlocal Supergravity

We derive the N=1 supersymmetric extension for a class of weakly nonlocal four dimensional gravitational theories.The construction is explicitly done in the superspace and the tree-level perturbative unitarity is explicitly proved both in the superfield formalism and in field components. For the minimal nonlocal supergravity the spectrum is the same as in the local theory and in particular it is ghost-free. The supersymmetric extension of the super-renormalizable Starobinsky theory and of two alternative massive nonlocal supergravities are found as straightforward applications of the formalism. Power-counting arguments ensure super-renormalizability with milder requirement for the asymptotic behavior of form factors than in ordinary nonlocal gravity. The most noteworthy result, common to ordinary supergravity, is the absence of quantum corrections to the cosmological constant in any regularization procedure. We cannot exclude the usual one-loop quadratic divergences. However, local vertices in the superfields, not undergoing renormalization, can be introduced to cancel out such divergences. Therefore, quantum finiteness is certainly achieved in dimensional regularization and most likely also in the cut-off regularization scheme. We also discuss the n-point scattering amplitudes making use of a general field redefinition theorem implemented in the superspace. Finally, we show that all the exact solutions of the local supergravity in vacuum are solutions of the nonlocal one too. In particular, we have the usual Schwarzschild singularity. We infer that the weak nonlocality, even in the presence of minimal supersymmetry, is not sufficient to solve the spacetime singularities issue, although the theory is finite at quantum level.

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arXiv2016

Quantum spectral dimension in quantum field theory

We reinterpret the spectral dimension of spacetimes as the scaling of an effective self-energy transition amplitude in quantum field theory (QFT), when the system is probed at a given resolution. This picture has four main advantages: (a) it dispenses with the usual interpretation (unsatisfactory in covariant approaches) where, instead of a transition amplitude, one has a probability density solving a nonrelativistic diffusion equation in an abstract diffusion time; (b) it solves the problem of negative probabilities known for higher-order and nonlocal dispersion relations in classical and quantum gravity; (c) it clarifies the concept of quantum spectral dimension as opposed to the classical one. We then consider a class of logarithmic dispersion relations associated with quantum particles and show that the spectral dimension $d_s$ of spacetime as felt by these quantum probes can deviate from its classical value, equal to the topological dimension $D$. In particular, in the presence of higher momentum powers it changes with the scale, dropping from $D$ in the infrared (IR) to a value $d_s^{\rm UV}\leq D$ in the ultraviolet (UV). We apply this general result to Stelle theory of renormalizable gravity, which attains the universal value $d_s^{\rm UV}=2$ for any dimension $D$.

hep-th↗

arXiv2016

Black supernovae and black holes in non-local gravity

In a previous paper, we studied the interior solution of a collapsing body in a non-local theory of gravity super-renormalizable at the quantum level. We found that the classical singularity is replaced by a bounce, after which the body starts expanding. A black hole, strictly speaking, never forms. The gravitational collapse does not create an event horizon but only an apparent one for a finite time. In this paper, we solve the equations of motion assuming that the exterior solution is static. With such an assumption, we are able to reconstruct the solution in the whole spacetime, namely in both the exterior and interior regions. Now the gravitational collapse creates an event horizon in a finite comoving time, but the central singularity is approached in an infinite time. We argue that these black holes should be unstable, providing a link between the scenarios with and without black holes. Indeed, we find a non catastrophic ghost-instability of the metric in the exterior region. Interestingly, under certain conditions, the lifetime of our black holes exactly scales as the Hawking evaporation time.

gr-qc↗

arXiv2016

Superrenormalizable quantum gravity with complex ghosts

We suggest and briefly review a new sort of superrenormalizable models of higher derivative quantum gravity. The higher derivative terms in the action can be introduced in such a way that all the unphysical massive states have complex poles. According to the literature on Lee-Wick quantization, in this case the theory can be formulated as unitary, since all massive ghosts-like degrees of freedom are unstable.

hep-th↗

arXiv2016

Super-renormalizable or Finite Lee-Wick Quantum Gravity

We propose a class of multidimensional higher derivative theories of gravity without extra real degrees of freedom besides the graviton field. The propagator shows up the usual real graviton pole and extra complex conjugates poles that do not contribute to the absorptive part of the physical scattering amplitudes. Indeed, they may consistently be excluded from the asymptotic observable states of the theory making use of the Lee-Wick and Cutkoski, Landshoff, Olive and Polkinghorne prescription for the construction of a unitary S-matrix. Therefore, the spectrum consists on the graviton and short lived elementary unstable particles that we named "anti-gravitons" because of their repulsive contribution to the gravitational potential at short distance. However, another interpretation of the complex conjugate pairs is proposed based on the Calmet's suggestion, i.e. they could be understood as black hole precursors long established in the classical theory. Since the theory is CPT invariant, the complex conjugate of the micro black hole precursor has received as a white hole precursor consistently with the t'Hooft complementary principle. It is proved that the quantum theory is super-renormalizable in even dimension, i.e. only a finite number of divergent diagrams survive, and finite in odd dimension. Furthermore, turning on a local potential of the Riemann tensor we can make the theory finite in any dimension. The singularity-free Newtonian gravitational potential is explicitly computed for a range of higher derivative theories. Finally, we propose a new super-reneromalizable or finite Lee-Wick standard model of particle physics.

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