General Relativity and Quantum Cosmology (gr-qc)

Abstract: The last three decades have witnessed the surge of quantum gravity phenomenology in the ultraviolet regime as exemplified by the Planck-scale accuracy of time-delay measurements from highly energetic astrophysical events. Yet, recent advances in precision measurements and control over quantum phenomena may usher in a new era of low-energy quantum gravity phenomenology. In this study, we investigate relativistic modified dispersion relations (MDRs) in curved spacetime and derive the corresponding nonrelativistic Schr\"odinger equation using two complementary approaches. First, we take the nonrelativistic limit, and canonically quantise the result. Second, we apply a WKB-like expansion to an MDR-inspired deformed relativistic wave equation. Within the area of applicability of single-particle quantum mechanics, both approaches imply equivalent results. Surprisingly, we recognise in the generalized uncertainty principle (GUP), the prevailing approach in nonrelativistic quantum gravity phenomenology, the MDR which is least amenable to low-energy experiments. Consequently, importing data from the mentioned time-delay measurements, we constrain the linear GUP up to the Planck scale and improve on current bounds to the quadratic one by 17 orders of magnitude. MDRs with larger implications in the infrared, however, can be tightly constrained in the nonrelativistic regime. We use the ensuing deviation from the equivalence principle to bound some MDRs, for example the one customarily associated with the bicrossproduct basis of the $\kappa$-Poincar\'e algebra, to up to four orders of magnitude below the Planck scale.

Abstract: It is shown that any cosmological anisotropic model produces supersymmetric theories for both massless scalar and electromagnetic fields. This supersymmetric theory is the time-domain analogue of a supersymmetric quantum mechanical theory. In this case, the variations of the anisotropic scale factors of the Universe are responsible for triggering the supersymmetry. For scalar fields, the superpartner fields evolve in two different cosmological scenarios (Universes). On the other hand, for propagating electromagnetic fields, supersymmetry is manifested through its polarization degrees of freedom in one Universe. In this case, polarization degrees of freedom of electromagnetic waves, which are orthogonal to its propagation direction, become superpartners from each other. This behavior can be measured, for example, through the rotation of the plane of polarization of cosmological light.

Abstract: We propose a setting that simulates Hawking radiation from an analogue bouncing geometry, i.e., a collapsing geometry that reverts its collapse after a finite time, in a setup consisting of a coplanar waveguide terminated in superconducting quantum-interference devices at both ends. We demonstrate experimental feasibility of the proposed setup within the current technology. Our analysis illustrates the resilience of Hawking radiation under changes in the physics at energy scales much larger than the temperature, supporting the idea that regular alternatives to black holes would also emit Hawking radiation.

Abstract: Stimulated by the recent researches of black hole thermodynamics for black hole with Newman-Unti-Tamburino (NUT) parameter, we investigate the thermodynamics and weak cosmic censorship conjecture for a Kerr-Newman Taub-NUT black hole. By defining the electric charge as a Komar integral over the event horizon, we construct a consistent first law of black hole thermodynamics for a Kerr-Newman Taub-NUT black hole through Euclidean action. Having the first law of black hole thermodynamics, we investigate the weak cosmic censorship conjecture for the black hole with a charged test particle and a complex scalar field. We find that an extremal black hole cannot be destroyed by a charged test particle and a complex scalar field. For a near-extremal black hole with small NUT parameter, it can be destroyed by a charged test particle but cannot be destroyed by a complex scalar field. Since there are many different viewpoints on thermodynamics for black holes with NUT parameter, the investigation of weak cosmic censorship conjecture might provide a preliminary selection for the thermodynamics for black holes with NUT parameter.

Abstract: Every signal propagating through the universe is at least weakly lensed by the intervening gravitational field. In some situations, wave-optics phenomena (diffraction, interference) can be observed as frequency-dependent modulations of the waveform of gravitational waves (GWs). We will denote these signatures as Wave-Optics Features (WOFs) and analyze them in detail. Our framework can efficiently and accurately compute WOF in the single-image regime, of which weak lensing is a limit. The phenomenology of WOF is rich and offers valuable information: the dense cusps of individual halos appear as peaks in Green's function for lensing. If resolved, these features probe the number, effective masses, spatial distribution and inner profiles of substructures. High signal-to-noise GW signals reveal WOFs well beyond the Einstein radius, leading to a fair probability of observation by upcoming detectors such as LISA. Potential applications of WOF include reconstruction of the lens' projected density, delensing standard sirens and inferring large-scale structure morphology and the halo mass function. Because WOF are sourced by light halos with negligible baryonic content, their detection (or lack thereof) holds promise to test dark matter scenarios.

Abstract: In this paper we present the power series solution of the Klein-Gordon equation in the spacetime background of a gravitational wave with amplitude that decays with distance from the source. The resulting solution describes the interaction of a scalar plane wave travelling in an arbitrary direction relative to the direction of propagation of the gravitational wave. This solution has the unexpected property that as the scalar wave approaches collinearity with the gravitational wave there is a rapid transition in the form of the solution. The solution in the collinear limit exhibits a resonance phenomenon which distinguishes these results from previous analyses involving plane gravitational wave backgrounds. We discuss in detail the similarities and differences between the solutions for plane gravitational waves and gravitational waves with amplitude that decreases with distance from the source. We give an argument that this solution of the Klein-Gordon equation only describes the interaction of a gravitational wave with a scalar wave and that the gravitational wave will not produce a scalar waveform in a vacuum. The interaction between the gravitational and scalar waves lead to both sinusoidal time-dependent fluctuations in, and time-independent enhancement of, the scalar current in the direction of the gravitational wave. Finally, we discuss the possibility of observable effects of this interaction.