2006/05/23 by Walter D. Goldberger, Ira Z. Rothstein · 2 citations
Physics and Astronomy · #Astronomy #Astrophysical Phenomena and Observations #Binary black hole #Black Holes and Theoretical Physics #Black hole (networking) #Black hole thermodynamics #Classical mechanics #Gravitation #Gravitational wave #Hawking radiation #Horizon #Physics #Pulsars and Gravitational Waves Research #Quantum mechanics #Theoretical physics #gr-qc #hep-ph #hep-th
paper · pdf · doi:10.1007/s10714-006-0345-7
published as Gen.Rel.Grav.38:1537-1546,2006; Int.J.Mod.Phys.D15:2293-2302,2006 · Awarded second prize for 2006 Gravity Research Foundation essay contest
arxiv created 2006/05/23 · openalex publication_date 2006/10/12 · arxiv updated 2009/12/01 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/08/05
In this essay we introduce a theoretical framework designed to describe black hole dynamics. The difficulties in understanding such dynamics stems from the proliferation of scales involved when one attempts to simultaneously describe all of the relevant dynamical degrees of freedom. These range from the modes that describe the black hole horizon, which are responsible for dissipative effects, to the long wavelength gravitational radiation that drains mechanical energy from macroscopic black hole bound states. We approach the problem from a Wilsonian point of view, by building a tower of theories of gravity each of which is valid at different scales. The methodology leads to multiple new results in diverse topics including phase transitions of Kaluza-Klein black holes and the interactions of spinning black hole in non-relativistic orbits. Moreover, our methods tie together speculative ideas regarding dualities for black hole horizons to real physical measurements in gravitational wave detectors.