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264 records · Page 15

Heavy states in 3d gravity and 2d CFT

We discuss correlators of light fields in heavy states in AdS 3 gravity and holographic 2d CFTs. In the bulk, the propagator of free fields in AdS backgrounds containing a conical defect or a BTZ black hole can be obtained by solving a wave equation, as well as by the method of images. On the boundary, these geometries are sourced by heavy operator insertions, and the propagator is dual to a heavy-light (HHLL) correlator. By matching its expansion in Virasoro blocks to our bulk results, we determine the OPE coefficients of all contributing states in both the s and t channels. In the s channel, these states are excitations of the light field on top of the heavy state, and their OPE coefficients are the amplitudes to create them. The t-channel OPE is dominated by the Virasoro vacuum block, but there is also an infinite family of light two-particle states that contribute to the correlator. The OPE coefficients that couple these states to heavy operators represent their expectation values in heavy backgrounds. We determine them exactly, derive their asymptotic form at large twist, and discuss their behavior near and above the BTZ threshold, where they become thermal one-point functions.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗

The timbre of Hawking gravitons: an effective description of energy transport from holography

Planar black holes in AdS, which are holographically dual to compressible relativistic fluids, have a long-lived phonon mode that captures the physics of attenuated sound propagation and transports energy in the plasma. We describe the open effective field theory of this fluctuating phonon degree of freedom. The dynamics of the phonon is encoded in a single scalar field whose gravitational coupling has non-trivial spatial momentum dependence. This description fits neatly into the paradigm of classifying gravitational modes by their Markovianity index, depending on whether they are long-lived. The sound scalar is a non-Markovian field with index 3 - d for a d-dimensional fluid. We reproduce (and extend) the dispersion relation of the holographic sound mode to quartic order in derivatives, constructing in the process the effective field theory governing its attenuated dynamics and associated stochastic fluctuations. We also remark on the presence of additional spatially homogeneous zero modes in the gravitational problem, which remain disconnected from the phonon Goldstone mode.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗

Holomorphic waves of black hole microstructure

We obtain the largest families constructed to date of $$ \frac{1}{8} $$ 1 8 -BPS solutions of type IIB supergravity. They have the same charges and mass as supersymmetric D1-D5-P black holes, but they cap off smoothly with no horizon. Their construction relies on the structure of superstratum states, but allows the momentum wave to have an arbitrary shape. Each family is based on an arbitrary holomorphic function of one variable. More broadly, we show that the most general solution is described by two arbitrary holomorphic functions of three variables. After exhibiting several new families of such “holomorphic superstrata,” we reformulate the BPS backgrounds and equations in holomorphic form and show how this simplifies their structure. The holomorphic formulation is thus both a fundamental part of superstrata as well as an effective tool for their construction. In addition, we demonstrate that holomorphy provides a powerful tool in establishing the smoothness of our solutions without constraining the underlying functions. We also exhibit new families of solutions in which the momentum waves of the superstrata are highly localized at infinity but diffuse and spread into the infra-red limit in the core of the superstratum. Our work also leads to some results that can be tested within the dual CFT.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗

Signatures of deconfined quark phases in binary neutron star mergers

We investigate the quark deconfinement phase transition in the context of binary neutron star (BNS) mergers. We employ a new finite-temperature composition-dependent equation of state (EOS) with a first order phase transition between hadrons and deconfined quarks to perform numerical relativity simulations of BNS mergers. Here, the softening of the EOS due to the phase transition causes the merger remnants to be more compact and to collapse to a black hole (BH) at earlier times. The phase transition is imprinted on the postmerger gravitational wave (GW) signal duration, amplitude, and peak frequency. However, this imprint is only detectable for binaries with sufficiently long-lived remnants. Moreover, the phase transition does not result in significant deviations from quasi-universal relations for the postmerger GW peak frequency. We also study the impact of the phase transition on dynamical ejecta, remnant accretion disk masses, r-process nucleosynthetic yields and associated electromagnetic (EM) counterparts. While there are differences in the EM counterparts and nucleosynthesis yields between the purely hadronic models and the models with phase transitions, these can be primarily ascribed to the difference in remnant collapse time between the two. An exception is the non-thermal afterglow caused by the interaction of the fastest component of the dynamical ejecta and the interstellar medium, which is systematically boosted in the binaries with phase transition as a consequence of the more violent merger they experience.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

A random unitary circuit model for black hole evaporation

Inspired by the Hayden-Preskill protocol for black hole evaporation, we consider the dynamics of a quantum many-body qudit system coupled to an external environment, where the time evolution is driven by the continuous limit of certain 2-local random unitary circuits. We study both cases where the unitaries are chosen with and without a conserved U(1) charge and focus on two aspects of the dynamics. First, we study analytically and numerically the growth of the entanglement entropy of the system, showing that two different time scales appear: one is intrinsic to the internal dynamics (the scrambling time), while the other depends on the system-environment coupling. In the presence of a U(1) conserved charge, we show that the entanglement follows a Page-like behavior in time: it begins to decrease in the middle stage of the “evaporation”, and decreases monotonically afterwards. Second, we study the time needed to retrieve information initially injected in the system from measurements on the environment qudits. Based on explicit numerical computations, we characterize such time both when the retriever has control over the initial configuration or not, showing that different scales appear in the two cases.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗

Quantum Information Science in High Energy Physics at the Large Hadron Collider (Final Report-QuantISED)

We pursue scientific research at the interface of High Energy Physics and Quantum Information Science. This includes studies of thermal radiation and quantum entanglement in high-energy collisions at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC), with special emphasis on entanglement entropy and the Higgs boson. This project has also been extended to include quantum entanglement and charged current weak interactions using Fermilab results. And most recently, we have begun tests of the temporal entanglement using LHC data. Collider experiments such as proton-proton collisions at the LHC yield hadrons that exhibit an exponential behavior at low transverse momenta. This surprising behavior is seen in data from both the ATLAS and CMS collaborations. We attribute this phenomenon to quantum entanglement between the regions in the nucleon wave function. The exponential component to the transverse momentum distribution is a result of thermal radiation that is akin to Hawking or Unruh radiation that should exist at the event horizon of astrophysical black holes and neutron stars. The Principal Investigator, in collaboration with a theoretical physicist at Stony Brook University and Brookhaven National Laboratory, and with Yale University students, has shown evidence for this thermal radiation in several production and decay processes in the ATLAS and CMS data, and its connection to entanglement entropy (O.K. Baker and D.E Kharzeev, Phys. Rev. D 98, 054007 (2018)), including even the Higgs boson sector. Interestingly, this thermal behavior is also seen in momentum distributions of charged current weak interactions according to our studies. These findings suggest a deep connection between quantum entanglement (entanglement entropy) and thermalization in both hadron collisions at the energy frontier and neutrino scattering at the intensity frontier. We have confirmed the proposed relation between the effective temperature and the hard-scattering scale at lower energies using the most recent LHC data for the following systems: Higgs bosons, top quarks, and charged hadrons. Additionally, we have results for hadron production in neutrino scattering from nuclei using Fermilab weak interaction data. This study is carried out using data from the MINERvA collaboration. In those cases where entanglement is expected, there is an exponential component to the momentum distribution, while this component is absent in those processes where no entanglement is expected. This research thus tests the hypothesis about a link between quantum entanglement and thermalization in strong and weak interactions. See Phys Lett B 811, 135948 (2020). We also initiated research applying a quantum search algorithm (Grover's Algorithm) to LHC data. This quantum algorithm was used to show how rare events in LHC data can be searched for in large, unsorted databases, with quadratic speedup compared to classical search algorithms on classical computers. See "Application of a Quantum Search Algorithm to High- Energy Physics Data at the Large Hadron Collider", arXiv:2010.00649 [quant-ph].

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

Matrix-Model Simulations Using Quantum Computing, Deep Learning, and Lattice Monte Carlo

Matrix quantum mechanics plays various important roles in theoretical physics, such as a holographic description of quantum black holes, and it underpins the only practical numerical approach to the study of complex high-dimensional supergravity theories. Understanding quantum black holes and the role of entanglement in a holographic setup is of paramount importance for the realization of a quantum theory of gravity. Moreover, a complete numerical understanding of the holographic duality and the emergence of geometric space-time features from microscopic degrees of freedom could pave the way for new discoveries in quantum information science. Euclidean lattice Monte Carlo simulations are the de facto numerical tool for understanding the spectrum of large matrix models and have been used to test the holographic duality. However, they are not tailored to extract dynamical properties or even the quantum wave function of the ground state of matrix models. Quantum computing and deep learning provide potentially useful approaches to study the dynamics of matrix quantum mechanics. If successful in the context of matrix models, these rapidly improving numerical techniques could become the new Swiss army knife of quantum gravity practitioners. In this paper, we perform the first systematic survey for quantum computing and deep-learning approaches to matrix quantum mechanics, comparing them to lattice Monte Carlo simulations. These provide baseline benchmarks before addressing more complicated problems. In particular, we test the performance of each method by calculating the low-energy spectrum.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗

Searching for Gravitational Waves from Cosmological Phase Transitions with the NANOGrav 12.5-Year Dataset

We search for a first-order phase transition gravitational wave signal in 45 pulsars from the NANOGrav 12.5-year dataset. We find that the data can be modeled in terms of a strong first order phase transition taking place at temperatures below the electroweak scale. However, we do not observe any strong preference for a phase-transition interpretation of the signal over the standard astrophysical interpretation in terms of supermassive black hole mergers; but we expect to gain additional discriminating power with future datasets, improving the signal to noise ratio and extending the sensitivity window to lower frequencies. An interesting open question is how well gravitational wave observatories could separate such signals.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗

Star formation and molecular gas properties of post-starburst galaxies

Post-starburst galaxies are believed to be in a rapid transition between major merger starbursts and quiescent ellipticals. Their optical spectrum is dominated by A-type stars, suggesting a starburst that was quenched recently. While optical observations suggest little ongoing star formation, some have been shown to host significant molecular gas reservoirs. This led to the suggestion that gas depletion is not required to end the starburst, and that star formation is suppressed by other processes. We present NOEMA CO(1−0) observations of 15 post-starburst galaxies with emission lines consistent with active galactic nucleus (AGN) photoionization. We collect post-starburst candidates with molecular gas measurements from the literature, with some classified as classical E + A, while others with line ratios consistent with AGN and/or shock ionization. Using far-infrared observations, we show that systems that were reported to host exceptionally large molecular gas reservoirs host in fact obscured star formation, with some systems showing star formation rates comparable to ULIRGs. Among E + A galaxies with molecular gas measurements, 7 out of 26 (26 per cent) host obscured starbursts. Using far-infrared observations, post-starburst candidates show similar SFR– M H 2 and Kennicutt–Schmidt relations to those observed in star-forming and starburst galaxies. In particular, there is no need to hypothesize star formation quenching by processes other than the consumption of molecular gas by star formation. The combination of optical, far-infrared, and CO observations indicates that some regions within these galaxies have been recently quenched, while others are still forming stars in highly obscured regions. All this calls into question the traditional interpretation of such galaxies.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

Rayleigh-Taylor Gravity Waves and Quasiperiodic Oscillation Phenomenon in X-ray Binaries

Accretion onto compact objects in X-ray binaries (black hole, neutron star (NS), white dwarf) is characterized by non-uniform flow density profiles. Such an effect of heterogeneity in presence of gravitational forces and pressure gradients exhibits Rayleigh-Taylor gravity waves (RTGW). They should be seen as quasiperiodic wave oscillations (QPO) of the accretion flow in the transition (boundary) layer between the Keplerian disk and the central object. In this paper the author shows that the main QPO frequency, which is very close to the Keplerian frequency, is split into separate frequencies (hybrid and low branch) under the influence of the gravitational forces in the rotational frame of reference. The RTGWs must be present and the related QPOs should be detected in any system where the gravity, buoyancy and Coriolis force effects cannot be excluded (even in the Earth and solar environments). The observed low and high QPO frequencies are an intrinsic signature of the RTGW. The author elaborates the conditions for the density profile when the RTGW oscillations are stable. A comparison of the inferred QPO frequencies with QPO observations is presented. The author finds that hectohertz frequencies detected from NS binaries can be identified as the RTGW low branch frequencies. The author also predicts that an observer can see the double NS spin frequency during the NS long (super) burst events when the pressure gradients and buoyant forces are suppressed. The Coriolis force is the only force which acts in the rotational frame of reference and its presence causes perfect coherent pulsations with a frequency twice of the NS spin. The QPO observations of neutron binaries have established that the high QPO frequencies do not go beyond of the certain upper limit. The author explains this observational effect as a result of the density profile inversions. Also the author demonstrates that a particular problem of the gravity waves in the rotational frame of reference in the approximation of very small pressure gradients is reduced to the problem of the classical oscillator in the rotational frame of reference which was previously introduced and applied for the interpretation of kHZ QPO observation by Osherovich & Titarchuk.

Titarchuk, Lev↗

Numerical relativity simulations of prompt collapse mergers: Threshold mass and phenomenological constraints on neutron star properties after GW170817

We determine the threshold mass for prompt (no bounce) black hole formation in equal-mass neutron star (NS) mergers using a new set of 227 numerical relativity simulations. We consider 23 phenomenological and microphysical finite-temperature equations of state (EOS), including models with hyperons and first-order phase transitions to deconfined quarks. We confirm the existence of EOS-insensitive relations between the threshold mass, binary tidal parameter at the threshold (Λth), maximum mass of nonrotating NSs, and radii of reference mass NSs. We combine the EOS-insensitive relations, phenomenological constraints on NS properties, and observational data from GW170817 to derive an improved lower limit on radii of maximum mass and a 1.6 M ⊙ NS of 9.81 and 10.90 km, respectively. We also constrain the radius and quadrupolar tidal deformability (Λ) of a 1.4 M ⊙ NS to be larger than 10.74 km and 172, respectively. We consider uncertainties in all independent parameters—fitting coefficients as well as GW170817 masses while reporting the range of radii constraints. We discuss an approach to constrain the upper as well as lower limit of NS maximum mass using future binary NS detections and their identification as prompt or delayed collapse. With future observations, it will be possible to derive even tighter constraints on the properties of matter at and above nuclear density using the method proposed in this work.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

Population of Merging Compact Binaries Inferred Using Gravitational Waves through GWTC-3

We report on the population properties of compact binary mergers inferred from gravitational-wave observations of these systems during the first three LIGO-Virgo observing runs. The Gravitational-Wave Transient Catalog 3 (GWTC-3) contains signals consistent with three classes of binary mergers: binary black hole, binary neutron star, and neutron star–black hole mergers. We infer the binary neutron star merger rate to be between 10 and 1700 Gpc − 3 yr − 1 and the neutron star–black hole merger rate to be between 7.8 and 140 Gpc − 3 yr − 1 , assuming a constant rate density in the comoving frame and taking the union of 90% credible intervals for methods used in this work. We infer the binary black hole merger rate, allowing for evolution with redshift, to be between 17.9 and 44 Gpc − 3 yr − 1 at a fiducial redshift ( z = 0.2 ). The rate of binary black hole mergers is observed to increase with redshift at a rate proportional to ( 1 + z ) κ with κ = 2. 9 − 1.8 + 1.7 for z ≲ 1 . Using both binary neutron star and neutron star–black hole binaries, we obtain a broad, relatively flat neutron star mass distribution extending from 1.2 − 0.2 + 0.1 to 2.0 − 0.3 + 0.3 M ⊙ . We confidently determine that the merger rate as a function of mass sharply declines after the expected maximum neutron star mass, but cannot yet confirm or rule out the existence of a lower mass gap between neutron stars and black holes. We also find the binary black hole mass distribution has localized over- and underdensities relative to a power-law distribution, with peaks emerging at chirp masses of 8.3 − 0.5 + 0.3 and 27.9 − 1.8 + 1.9 M ⊙ . While we continue to find that the mass distribution of a binary’s more massive component strongly decreases as a function of primary mass, we observe no evidence of a strongly suppressed merger rate above approximately 60 M ⊙ , which would indicate the presence of a upper mass gap. Observed black hole spins are small, with half of spin magnitudes below χ i ≈ 0.25 . While the majority of spins are preferentially aligned with the orbital angular momentum, we infer evidence of antialigned spins among the binary population. We observe an increase in spin magnitude for systems with more unequal-mass ratio. We also observe evidence of misalignment of spins relative to the orbital angular momentum. Published by the American Physical Society 2023

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗