Future asymptotic expansions of Bianchi VIII vacuum metrics

Bianchi VIII vacuum solutions to Einstein's equations are causally geodesically complete to the future, given an appropriate time orientation, and the objective of this article is to analyze the asymptotic behaviour of solutions in this time direction. For the Bianchi class A spacetimes, there is a formulation of the field equations that was presented in an article by Wainwright and Hsu, and in a previous article we analyzed the asymptotic behaviour of solutions in these variables. One objective of this paper is to give an asymptotic expansion for the metric. Furthermore, we relate this expansion to the topology of the compactified spatial hypersurfaces of homogeneity. The compactified spatial hypersurfaces have the topology of Seifert fibred spaces and we prove that in the case of NUT Bianchi VIII spacetimes, the length of a circle fibre converges to a positive constant but that in the case of general Bianchi VIII solutions, the length tends to infinity at a rate we determine.Comment: 50 pages, no figures. Erronous definition of Seifert fibred spaces correcte

Future non-linear stability for reflection symmetric solutions of the Einstein-Vlasov system of Bianchi types II and VI0_0

Using the methods developed for the Bianchi I case we have shown that a boostrap argument is also suitable to treat the future non-linear stability for reflection symmetric solutions of the Einstein-Vlasov system of Bianchi types II and VI$_0$. These solutions are asymptotic to the Collins-Stewart solution with dust and the Ellis-MacCallum solution respectively. We have thus generalized the results obtained by Rendall and Uggla in the case of locally rotationally symmetric Bianchi II spacetimes to the reflection symmetric case. However we needed to assume small data. For Bianchi VI$_0$ there is no analogous previous result.Comment: 30 page

Domain-wall/Cosmology correspondence in adS/dS supergravity

We realize the domain-wall/cosmology correspondence for (pseudo)supersymmetric domain walls (cosmologies) in the context of four-dimensional supergravity. The OSp(2|4)-invariant anti-de Sitter (adS) vacuum of a particular N=2 Maxwell-Einstein supergravity theory is shown to correspond to the OSp(2^*|2,2)-invariant de Sitter (dS) vacuum of a particular pseudo-supergravity model, with `twisted' reality conditions on spinors. More generally, supersymmetric domain walls of the former model correspond to pseudo-supersymmetric cosmologies of the latter model, with time-dependent pseudo-Killing spinors that we give explicitly.Comment: 21 pages;v2: rewritten to clarify the link with fake supergravity -- main results unchanged; v3: typos corrected, two refs added, JHEP versio

On the relation between mathematical and numerical relativity

The large scale binary black hole effort in numerical relativity has led to an increasing distinction between numerical and mathematical relativity. This note discusses this situation and gives some examples of succesful interactions between numerical and mathematical methods is general relativity.Comment: 12 page

Scalar fields on SL(2,R) and H^2 x R geometric spacetimes and linear perturbations

Using appropriate harmonics, we study the future asymptotic behavior of massless scalar fields on a class of cosmological vacuum spacetimes. The spatial manifold is assumed to be a circle bundle over a higher genus surface with a locally homogeneous metric. Such a manifold corresponds to the SL(2,R)-geometry (Bianchi VIII type) or the H^2 x R-geometry (Bianchi III type). After a technical preparation including an introduction of suitable harmonics for the circle-fibered Bianchi VIII to separate variables, we derive systems of ordinary differential equations for the scalar field. We present future asymptotic solutions for these equations in a special case, and find that there is a close similarity with those on the circle-fibered Bianchi III spacetime. We discuss implications of this similarity, especially to (gravitational) linear perturbations. We also point out that this similarity can be explained by the "fiber term dominated behavior" of the two models.Comment: 23 pages, no figures, to be published in Class. Quant. Gravi

Regularity of Cauchy horizons in S2xS1 Gowdy spacetimes

We study general S2xS1 Gowdy models with a regular past Cauchy horizon and prove that a second (future) Cauchy horizon exists, provided that a particular conserved quantity $J$ is not zero. We derive an explicit expression for the metric form on the future Cauchy horizon in terms of the initial data on the past horizon and conclude the universal relation A\p A\f=(8\pi J)^2 where A\p and A\f are the areas of past and future Cauchy horizon respectively.Comment: 17 pages, 1 figur

Closed cosmologies with a perfect fluid and a scalar field

Closed, spatially homogeneous cosmological models with a perfect fluid and a scalar field with exponential potential are investigated, using dynamical systems methods. First, we consider the closed Friedmann-Robertson-Walker models, discussing the global dynamics in detail. Next, we investigate Kantowski-Sachs models, for which the future and past attractors are determined. The global asymptotic behaviour of both the Friedmann-Robertson-Walker and the Kantowski-Sachs models is that they either expand from an initial singularity, reach a maximum expansion and thereafter recollapse to a final singularity (for all values of the potential parameter kappa), or else they expand forever towards a flat power-law inflationary solution (when kappa^2<2). As an illustration of the intermediate dynamical behaviour of the Kantowski-Sachs models, we examine the cases of no barotropic fluid, and of a massless scalar field in detail. We also briefly discuss Bianchi type IX models.Comment: 15 pages, 10 figure

Strong cosmic censorship for solutions of the Einstein-Maxwell field equations with polarized Gowdy symmetry

A proof of strong cosmic censorship is presented for a class of solutions of the Einstein-Maxwell equations, those with polarized Gowdy symmetry. A key element of the argument is the observation that by means of a suitable choice of variables the central equations in this problem can be written in a form where they are identical to the central equations for general (i.e. non-polarized) vacuum Gowdy spacetimes. Using this it is seen that the deep results of Ringstr\"om on strong cosmic censorship in the vacuum case have implications for the Einstein-Maxwell case. Working out the geometrical meaning of these analytical results leads to the main conclusion.Comment: Some references have been change

Dynamical systems approach to G2 cosmology

In this paper we present a new approach for studying the dynamics of spatially inhomogeneous cosmological models with one spatial degree of freedom. By introducing suitable scale-invariant dependent variables we write the evolution equations of the Einstein field equations as a system of autonomous partial differential equations in first-order symmetric hyperbolic format, whose explicit form depends on the choice of gauge. As a first application, we show that the asymptotic behaviour near the cosmological initial singularity can be given a simple geometrical description in terms of the local past attractor on the boundary of the scale-invariant dynamical state space. The analysis suggests the name ``asymptotic silence'' to describe the evolution of the gravitational field near the cosmological initial singularity.Comment: 28 pages, 3 tables, 1 *.eps figure, LaTeX2e (10pt), matches version accepted for publication by Classical and Quantum Gravit

The Similarity Hypothesis in General Relativity

Self-similar models are important in general relativity and other fundamental theories. In this paper we shall discuss the ``similarity hypothesis'', which asserts that under a variety of physical circumstances solutions of these theories will naturally evolve to a self-similar form. We will find there is good evidence for this in the context of both spatially homogenous and inhomogeneous cosmological models, although in some cases the self-similar model is only an intermediate attractor. There are also a wide variety of situations, including critical pheneomena, in which spherically symmetric models tend towards self-similarity. However, this does not happen in all cases and it is it is important to understand the prerequisites for the conjecture.Comment: to be submitted to Gen. Rel. Gra