Gil Jannes

Sensitivity of Hawking radiation to superluminal dispersion relations

We analyze the Hawking radiation process due to collapsing configurations in the presence of superluminal modifications of the dispersion relation. With such superluminal dispersion relations, the horizon effectively becomes a frequency-dependent concept. In particular, at every moment of the collapse, there is a critical frequency above which no horizon is experienced. We show that, as a consequence, the late-time radiation suffers strong modifications, both quantitative and qualitative, compared to the standard Hawking picture. Concretely, we show that the radiation spectrum becomes dependent on the measuring time, on the surface gravities associated with different frequencies, and on the critical frequency. Even if the critical frequency is well above the Planck scale, important modifications still show up.

A Real Lorentz-FitzGerald Contraction

Abstract Many condensed matter systems are such that their collective excitations at low energies can be described by fields satisfying equations of motion formally indistinguishable from those of relativistic field theory. The finite speed of propagation of the disturbances in the effective fields (in the simplest models, the speed of sound) plays here the role of the speed of light in fundamental physics. However, these apparently relativistic fields are immersed in an external Newtonian world (the condensed matter system itself and the laboratory can be considered Newtonian, since all the velocities involved are much smaller than the velocity of light) which provides a privileged coordinate system and therefore seems to destroy the possibility of having a perfectly defined relativistic emergent world. In this essay we ask ourselves the following question: In a homogeneous condensed matter medium, is there a way for internal observers, dealing exclusively with the low-energy collective phenomena, to detect their state of uniform motion with respect to the medium? By proposing a thought experiment based on the construction of a Michelson-Morley interferometer made of quasi-particles, we show that a real Lorentz-FitzGerald contraction takes place, so that internal observers are unable to find out anything about their ‘absolute’ state of motion. Therefore, we also show that an effective but perfectly defined relativistic world can emerge in a fishbowl world situated inside a Newtonian (laboratory) system. This leads us to reflect on the various levels of description in physics, in particular regarding the quest towards a theory of quantum gravity.

Quasinormal mode analysis in BEC acoustic black holes

We perform a quasinormal mode analysis of black-hole configurations in Bose-Einstein condensates (BECs). In this analysis we use the full Bogoliubov dispersion relation, not just the hydrodynamic or geometric approximation. We restrict our attention to one-dimensional flows in BECs with steplike discontinuities. For this case we show that in the hydrodynamic approximation quasinormal modes do not exist. The full dispersion relation, however, allows the existence of quasinormal modes. Remarkably, the spectrum of these modes is not discrete but continuous.

Stability analysis of sonic horizons in Bose-Einstein condensates

We examine the linear stability of various configurations in Bose-Einstein condensates with steplike sonic horizons. These configurations are chosen in analogy with gravitational systems with a black hole horizon, a white hole horizon, and a combination of both. We discuss the role of different boundary conditions in this stability analysis, paying special attention to their meaning in gravitational terms. We highlight that the stability of a given configuration, not only depends on its specific geometry, but especially on these boundary conditions. Under boundary conditions directly extrapolated from those in standard general relativity, black hole configurations, white hole configurations, and the combination of both into a black hole-white hole configuration are shown to be stable. However, we show that under other (less stringent) boundary conditions, configurations with a single black hole horizon remain stable, whereas white hole and black hole-white hole configurations develop instabilities associated to the presence of the sonic horizons.

Horizon effects for surface waves in wave channels and circular jumps

Surface waves in classical fluids experience a rich array of black/white hole horizon effects. The dispersion relation depends on the characteristics of the fluid (in our case, water and silicon oil) as well as on the fluid depth and the wavelength regime. In some cases, it can be tuned to obtain a relativistic regime plus high-frequency dispersive effects. We discuss two types of ongoing analogue white-hole experiments: deep water waves propagating against a counter-current in a wave channel and shallow waves on a circular hydraulic jump.

How sensitive is Hawking radiation to superluminal dispersion relations

We discuss the Hawking radiation process in a collapse scenario with superluminal dispersion relations. Due to these superluminal modifications, the horizon effectively becomes frequency‐dependent. At every moment of the collapse, a critical frequency can be calculated such that frequencies higher than this critical frequency do not couple to the collapsing geometry and hence do not see any horizon. We discuss three important consequences. First, the late‐time radiation in general has a lower intensity than in the standard Hawking picture. Second, the thermal output spectrum depends on the surface gravity, thereby effectively exploring the physics inside the black hole. Third, the radiation dies off as time advances.