11,795 research outputs found
Energy management of three-dimensional minimum-time intercept
A real-time computer algorithm to control and optimize aircraft flight profiles is described and applied to a three-dimensional minimum-time intercept mission
Restrictions on negative energy density in a curved spacetime
Recently a restriction ("quantum inequality-type relation") on the
(renormalized) energy density measured by a static observer in a "globally
static" (ultrastatic) spacetime has been formulated by Pfenning and Ford for
the minimally coupled scalar field, in the extension of quantum inequality-type
relation on flat spacetime of Ford and Roman. They found negative lower bounds
for the line integrals of energy density multiplied by a sampling (weighting)
function, and explicitly evaluate them for some specific spacetimes. In this
paper, we study the lower bound on spacetimes whose spacelike hypersurfaces are
compact and without boundary. In the short "sampling time" limit, the bound has
asymptotic expansion. Although the expansion can not be represented by locally
invariant quantities in general due to the nonlocal nature of the integral, we
explicitly evaluate the dominant terms in the limit in terms of the invariant
quantities. We also make an estimate for the bound in the long sampling time
limit.Comment: LaTex, 23 Page
Scalar Field Quantum Inequalities in Static Spacetimes
We discuss quantum inequalities for minimally coupled scalar fields in static
spacetimes. These are inequalities which place limits on the magnitude and
duration of negative energy densities. We derive a general expression for the
quantum inequality for a static observer in terms of a Euclidean two-point
function. In a short sampling time limit, the quantum inequality can be written
as the flat space form plus subdominant correction terms dependent upon the
geometric properties of the spacetime. This supports the use of flat space
quantum inequalities to constrain negative energy effects in curved spacetime.
Using the exact Euclidean two-point function method, we develop the quantum
inequalities for perfectly reflecting planar mirrors in flat spacetime. We then
look at the quantum inequalities in static de~Sitter spacetime, Rindler
spacetime and two- and four-dimensional black holes. In the case of a
four-dimensional Schwarzschild black hole, explicit forms of the inequality are
found for static observers near the horizon and at large distances. It is show
that there is a quantum averaged weak energy condition (QAWEC), which states
that the energy density averaged over the entire worldline of a static observer
is bounded below by the vacuum energy of the spacetime. In particular, for an
observer at a fixed radial distance away from a black hole, the QAWEC says that
the averaged energy density can never be less than the Boulware vacuum energy
density.Comment: 27 pages, 2 Encapsulated Postscript figures, uses epsf.tex, typeset
in RevTe
Is Quantum Spacetime Foam Unstable?
A very simple wormhole geometry is considered as a model of a mode of
topological fluctutation in Planck-scale spacetime foam. Quantum dynamics of
the hole reduces to quantum mechanics of one variable, throat radius, and
admits a WKB analysis. The hole is quantum-mechanically unstable: It has no
bound states. Wormhole wave functions must eventually leak to large radii. This
suggests that stability considerations along these lines may place strong
constraints on the nature and even the existence of spacetime foam.Comment: 15 page
Gravitational vacuum polarization IV: Energy conditions in the Unruh vacuum
Building on a series of earlier papers [gr-qc/9604007, gr-qc/9604008,
gr-qc/9604009], I investigate the various point-wise and averaged energy
conditions in the Unruh vacuum. I consider the quantum stress-energy tensor
corresponding to a conformally coupled massless scalar field, work in the
test-field limit, restrict attention to the Schwarzschild geometry, and invoke
a mixture of analytical and numerical techniques. I construct a semi-analytic
model for the stress-energy tensor that globally reproduces all known numerical
results to within 0.8%, and satisfies all known analytic features of the
stress-energy tensor. I show that in the Unruh vacuum (1) all standard
point-wise energy conditions are violated throughout the exterior region--all
the way from spatial infinity down to the event horizon, and (2) the averaged
null energy condition is violated on all outgoing radial null geodesics. In a
pair of appendices I indicate general strategy for constructing semi-analytic
models for the stress-energy tensor in the Hartle-Hawking and Boulware states,
and show that the Page approximation is in a certain sense the minimal ansatz
compatible with general properties of the stress-energy in the Hartle-Hawking
state.Comment: 40 pages; plain LaTeX; uses epsf.sty (ten encapsulated postscript
figures); two tables (table and tabular environments). Should successfully
compile under both LaTeX 209 and the 209 compatibility mode of LaTeX2
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