2,725 research outputs found
Lorentzian manifolds and scalar curvature invariants
We discuss (arbitrary-dimensional) Lorentzian manifolds and the scalar
polynomial curvature invariants constructed from the Riemann tensor and its
covariant derivatives. Recently, we have shown that in four dimensions a
Lorentzian spacetime metric is either -non-degenerate, and hence
locally characterized by its scalar polynomial curvature invariants, or is a
degenerate Kundt spacetime. We present a number of results that generalize
these results to higher dimensions and discuss their consequences and potential
physical applications.Comment: submitted to CQ
Note on the invariant classification of vacuum type D spacetimes
We illustrate the fact that the class of vacuum type D spacetimes which are
-\emph{non-degenerate} are invariantly classified by their scalar
polynomial curvature invariants
A spacetime not characterised by its invariants is of aligned type II
By using invariant theory we show that a (higher-dimensional) Lorentzian
metric that is not characterised by its invariants must be of aligned type II;
i.e., there exists a frame such that all the curvature tensors are
simultaneously of type II. This implies, using the boost-weight decomposition,
that for such a metric there exists a frame such that all positive boost-weight
components are zero. Indeed, we show a more general result, namely that any set
of tensors which is not characterised by its invariants, must be of aligned
type II. This result enables us to prove a number of related results, among
them the algebraic VSI conjecture.Comment: 14pages, CQG to appea
Electric and magnetic Weyl tensors in higher dimensions
Recent results on purely electric (PE) or magnetic (PM) spacetimes in n
dimensions are summarized. These include: Weyl types; diagonalizability;
conditions under which direct (or warped) products are PE/PM.Comment: 4 pages; short summary of (parts of) arXiv:1203.3563. Proceedings of
"Relativity and Gravitation - 100 Years after Einstein in Prague", Prague,
June 25-29, 2012 (http://ae100prg.mff.cuni.cz/
SO(n + 1) Symmetric Solutions of the Einstein Equations in Higher Dimensions
A method of solving the Einstein equations with a scalar field is presented.
It is applied to find higher dimensional vacuum metrics invariant under the
group SO(n + 1) acting on n-dimensional spheres.Comment: 11 page
General Kundt spacetimes in higher dimensions
We investigate a general metric of the Kundt class of spacetimes in higher
dimensions. Geometrically, it admits a non-twisting, non-shearing and
non-expanding geodesic null congruence. We calculate all components of the
curvature and Ricci tensors, without assuming any specific matter content, and
discuss algebraic types and main geometric constraints imposed by general
Einstein's field equations. We explicitly derive Einstein-Maxwell equations,
including an arbitrary cosmological constant, in the case of vacuum or possibly
an aligned electromagnetic field. Finally, we introduce canonical subclasses of
the Kundt family and we identify the most important special cases, namely
generalised pp-waves, VSI or CSI spacetimes, and gyratons.Comment: 15 page
Higher dimensional VSI spacetimes
We present the explicit metric forms for higher dimensional vanishing scalar
invariant (VSI) Lorentzian spacetimes. We note that all of the VSI spacetimes
belong to the higher dimensional Kundt class. We determine all of the VSI
spacetimes which admit a covariantly constant null vector, and we note that in
general in higher dimensions these spacetimes are of Ricci type III and Weyl
type III. The Ricci type N subclass is related to the chiral null models and
includes the relativistic gyratons and the higher dimensional pp-wave
spacetimes. The spacetimes under investigation are of particular interest since
they are solutions of supergravity or superstring theory.Comment: 14 pages, changes in second paragraph of the discussio
Ricci identities in higher dimensions
We explore connections between geometrical properties of null congruences and
the algebraic structure of the Weyl tensor in n>4 spacetime dimensions. First,
we present the full set of Ricci identities on a suitable "null" frame, thus
completing the extension of the Newman-Penrose formalism to higher dimensions.
Then we specialize to geodetic null congruences and study specific consequences
of the Sachs equations. These imply, for example, that Kundt spacetimes are of
type II or more special (like for n=4) and that for odd n a twisting geodetic
WAND must also be shearing (in contrast to the case n=4).Comment: 8 pages. v2: typo corrected between Propositions 2 and 3. v3: typo in
the last term in the first line of (11f) corrected, missing term on the
r.h.s. of (11p) added, first sentence between Propositions 2 and 3 slightly
change
Space-times admitting a three-dimensional conformal group
Perfect fluid space-times admitting a three-dimensional Lie group of
conformal motions containing a two-dimensional Abelian Lie subgroup of
isometries are studied. Demanding that the conformal Killing vector be proper
(i.e., not homothetic nor Killing), all such space-times are classified
according to the structure of their corresponding three-dimensional conformal
Lie group and the nature of their corresponding orbits (that are assumed to be
non-null). Each metric is then explicitly displayed in coordinates adapted to
the symmetry vectors. Attention is then restricted to the diagonal case, and
exact perfect fluid solutions are obtained in both the cases in which the fluid
four-velocity is tangential or orthogonal to the conformal orbits, as well as
in the more general "tilting" case.Comment: Latex 34 page
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