A universal relation among Euclidean integrals for black holes in higher-derivative gravity theories
Abstract
In this paper, we establish a universal equality governing Euclidean integrals of gravitational actions in higher-derivative theories. This relation is shown to hold universally for asymptotically flat black holes in pure gravity, and is generalized to asymptotically anti-de Sitter (AdS) spacetimes through appropriate regularization. We further examine its validity in systems with matter-gravity coupling, identifying that violations occur only when matter fields exhibit pathological behaviors: divergence at the horizon or non-decaying profiles at infinity. These findings reveal fundamental constraints on gravitational thermodynamics and provide diagnostic tools for identifying ill-behaved matter configurations.
Keywords
Cite
@article{arxiv.2508.05326,
title = {A universal relation among Euclidean integrals for black holes in higher-derivative gravity theories},
author = {Yong Xiao and Qiang Wang and Aonan Zhang},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:2508.05326},
year = {2025}
}
Comments
10 papges, no figures, accepted version