Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge 2002 iii Paper 75 3 d Solution Created 2026-10-03 Updated 2026-10-14
In the ambient space of signature , AdS is . Let an arbitrary event have embedding vector , and let be any future unit timelike tangent, soThe complete family through that event isDirect substitution gives and . Its ambient acceleration is , normal to the hyperboloid, so its tangential covariant acceleration vanishes. This proves that is proper time and that each curve is a timelike geodesic, rather than just guessing sinusoidal tracks from the diagram.
An AdS isometry can place any chosen at . Rotate the spatial direction into the displayed signed diameter. Write the initial local velocity as , with . Then , and . Eliminating using the global coordinates givesVarying the speed gives the drawn family; suppressed spatial directions can be restored by varying the tangent direction. It represents all timelike initial directions after the isometry and spatial rotations.
Timelike geodesics through an arbitrary AdS event, placed at the center by an isometry, refocusing at later antipodal events
. Details. Every finite-speed curve turns before the conformal boundary. At proper time , all reach ; at their ambient coordinates return to . This is Anti-de Sitter timelike geodesic refocusing. On the universal cover the global time has advanced by and , respectively, so these are later events. They are not closed timelike curves. The limits approach the null directions and are not timelike members of the family.
Radial timelike geodesic in anti-de Sitter spacetime Created 2026-09-24 Updated 2026-10-18
In static coordinates on anti-de Sitter spacetime with curvature radius and , put . The conserved energy per unit rest mass is . Timelike normalization for a radial geodesic gives , hence . An outward launch from the origin at proper time gives the displayed harmonic solution until its first return, after proper time , independently of . Beyond that return, use a signed diameter coordinate or change the radial direction to keep the areal radius nonnegative. This is a coordinate realization of Anti-de Sitter timelike geodesic refocusing.
