Critical Collapse of a Scalar Field in Semiclassical Loop Quantum Gravity

Florencia Benítez, Rodolfo Gambini, Luis Lehner, Steve Liebling, and Jorge Pullin

Phys. Rev. Lett. 124, 071301 – Published 21 February 2020

Abstract

We study the collapse in spherical symmetry of a massless scalar field minimally coupled to gravity using the semiclassical equations that are expected from loop quantum gravity. We find the critical behavior of the mass as a function of the parameters of the initial data similar to that found by Choptuik in classical general relativity for a large set of initial data and values of the polymerization parameter. Contrary to wide expectations for quantum gravity, our semiclassical field equations have an exact scale invariance, as do the classical field equations. As one would then expect, we numerically find that the phase transition is second order: again, as in the classical case.

Received 11 December 2019
Revised 9 January 2020
Accepted 3 February 2020

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.124.071301

Physics Subject Headings (PhySH)

Classical black holes General relativity equations & solutions Loop quantum gravity Singularities In general relativity

Gravitation, Cosmology & Astrophysics

Authors & Affiliations

Florencia Benítez ¹, Rodolfo Gambini¹, Luis Lehner², Steve Liebling ³, and Jorge Pullin ⁴

¹Instituto de Física, Facultad de Ciencias, Iguá 4225, Esq. Mataojo, 11400 Montevideo, Uruguay
²Perimeter Institute, 31 Caroline Street, Waterloo, Ontario N2L 2Y5, Canada
³Long Island University, Brookville, New York 11548, USA
⁴Department of Physics and Astronomy, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, Louisiana 70803-4001, USA