2004/05/19 by Maulik K. Parikh, MAULIK PARIKH · 6 citations
Physics and Astronomy · #Black Holes and Theoretical Physics #Noncommutative and Quantum Gravity Theories #Quantum Electrodynamics and Casimir Effect #astro-ph #gr-qc #hep-th
paper · pdf · doi:10.1142/s0218271804006498
published as Int.J.Mod.Phys.D13:2351-2354,2004; Gen.Rel.Grav.36:2419-2422,2004 · First prize in the Gravity Research Foundation Essay Competition. 7 pages, LaTex
arxiv created 2004/05/19 · openalex publication_date 2004/12/01 · arxiv updated 2009/12/01 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/28
Hawking radiation is often intuitively visualized as particles that have tunneled across the horizon. Yet, at first sight, it is not apparent where the barrier is. Here I show that the barrier depends on the tunneling particle itself. The key is to implement energy conservation, so that the black hole contracts during the process of radiation. A direct consequence is that the radiation spectrum cannot be strictly thermal. The correction to the thermal spectrum is of precisely the form that one would expect from an underlying unitary quantum theory. This may have profound implications for the black hole information puzzle.