Horizon flux inequality for causal matter 2026-10-05
For a future-directed causal four-momentum crossing a future Killing horizon with generator , the Lorentzian inner product obeys . With and , this is . A massive particle has strict inequality. The same bound follows in the nonextremal quasistationary regime from the Physical-process first law for a rotating black hole and the second law of black-hole mechanics. Negative Killing energy in a Penrose process is allowed, but its angular momentum must satisfy this bound.
Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge 2015 iii Paper 54 4 a Solution Created 2026-10-03 Updated 2026-10-06
The Physical-process first law for a rotating black hole, in four-dimensional general relativity with , isIt applies to a small neutral matter influx into an initially stationary, nonextremal black hole that settles to another stationary state. The background surface gravity and angular velocity are and , and are the Killing energy and angular momentum delivered through the event horizon. Other conserved charges are held fixed. The perturbation must be small enough that its horizon generators do not develop caustics, and all equalities below are to first order.
Let be the stationary Killing vector field normalized at infinity, and the axial Killing vector field with -periodic orbits. The horizon generator is . Choose an affine tangent and parameter with zero at the past stationary limiting section, so affine horizon-generator scaling gives, on the background horizonThe background null expansion and null shear vanish, and null twist vanishes for the hypersurface-orthogonal horizon generators. Linearizing the Null Raychaudhuri equation and using the Einstein field equations givesThe quadratic null expansion and null shear terms are second order. With background cross-sectional measure , the first-order area change is . Multiplying the evolution equation by and integrating by parts gives the first-order horizon-area response to matter fluxThe boundary term vanishes: at the past limiting section, and the final stationary boundary condition gives zero expansion in the settled future. Equivalently, assume a sufficiently localized influx with the required late-time decay.
The energy and angular-momentum fluxes have signsThese correspond to the particle conventions and . Their combination isThis proves the requested Physical-process first law of black-hole mechanics. For charged infall the corresponding law contains an additional horizon-potential term ; the energy-minus-angular-momentum version assumes that work term is absent.
Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge 2018 iii Paper 311 2 b Solution Created 2026-10-03 Updated 2026-10-05
The Physical-process first law for a rotating black hole applies to a small perturbation of a stationary nonextremal vacuum black hole by infalling neutral matter, followed by relaxation to stationarity. Its first-order form isHere the background horizon generator is , normalized by the unit time translation at infinity, and its surface gravity is constant, , as in the Zeroth law of black-hole mechanics. The formula neglects terms quadratic in the perturbation. Choose the process sufficiently weak that the horizon generators used below have no large caustics, and assume appropriate early and late stationary limits and convergent fluxes.
On the background Killing horizon, choose an affine generator such that ; the bifurcation or early stationary limit corresponds to . The background null expansion and null shear vanish. The null twist is zero because the perturbed event horizon is a null hypersurface. Linearizing the Null Raychaudhuri equation and using the Einstein field equations givesThe expansion squared and shear squared are second order, and the metric-trace part of the Einstein equations vanishes in this null contraction. Future stationarity sets . To first order is the derivative of the fractional area change, so, using the background area element ,The integration by parts uses , guaranteed by the stated endpoint conditions.
The conserved stress-energy current from a Killing vector gives the absorbed mass and angular momentum, with signsConsequentlywhich proves the law. Any other escaping flux must be accounted for separately when identifying these absorbed charges with the changes in the black hole. Electric-charge variations would require the corresponding potential-charge term; they are excluded in this version. The convention in Question 1 is not needed here.
Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge 2018 iii Paper 311 2 c Solution Created 2026-10-03 Updated 2026-10-05
For a Kerr black hole, the future horizon generator is . A future-directed causal four-momentum and a future-directed null vector satisfy in the convention. The conserved quantities from the Killing vector field are and . ThereforeFor a massive particle the inequality is strict. Equality for a null particle requires momentum parallel to the horizon generator and describes the limiting tangent case. In a Penrose process the absorbed particle may have ; for this requires sufficiently negative angular momentum.
In the nonextremal test-particle regime, the Physical-process first law for a rotating black hole identifies and , soby the second law of black-hole mechanics. The usual hypotheses of that area law, including the null energy condition and the required global regularity conditions, are understood. This thermodynamic derivation is first order in the capture process; the causal horizon flux inequality for causal matter also applies to the extremal horizon without dividing by .
Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge 2021 iii Paper 311 3 a Solution 2026-09-28
The Physical-process first law for a rotating black hole states that a small flux of matter through an initially and finally stationary horizon obeysin units . Let be an affinely parametrized horizon tangent with affine parameter on a bifurcation surface. Constancy of the surface gravity from the Zeroth law of black-hole mechanics and Gaussian null coordinates give the horizon generatorTo first order about a stationary horizon, the squared expansion and shear in the Null Raychaudhuri equation are second order. The Einstein field equations reduce it toThe final stationary condition givesSince , reversing the order of integration yieldsThe stress-energy current from a Killing vector gives the horizon Killing-energy fluxwhich proves the stated law.
Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge 2023 iii Paper 311 3 a Solution 2026-09-28
For a small amount of matter falling into an initially and finally stationary rotating black hole, the Physical-process first law for a rotating black hole isLet be an affinely parametrized horizon generator, with affine parameter at the background bifurcation surface. The horizon Killing vector field iswhere constancy of is the Zeroth law of black-hole mechanics. The flux of the conserved Killing current through the horizon is
On the stationary background, expansion and shear vanish. To first order in the perturbation, the quadratic optical terms in the Null Raychaudhuri equation may be dropped, and the Einstein equation givesImpose the teleological final condition . Integration followed by reversal of integration order givesComparison with the Killing-energy flux proves the stated law.