Higher dimensional spacetimes with a geodesic, shearfree, twistfree and expanding null congruence
Abstract
We present the complete family of higher dimensional spacetimes that admit a geodesic, shearfree, twistfree and expanding null congruence, thus extending the well-known D=4 class of Robinson-Trautman solutions. Einstein's equations are solved for empty space with an arbitrary cosmological constant and for aligned pure radiation. Main differences with respect to the D=4 case (such as the absence of type III/N solutions, related to ``violations'' of the Goldberg-Sachs theorem in D>4) are pointed out, also in connection with other recent works. A formal analogy with electromagnetic fields is briefly discussed in an appendix, where we demonstrate that multiple principal null directions of null Maxwell fields are necessarily geodesic, and that in D>4 they are also shearing if expanding.
Keywords
Cite
@article{arxiv.gr-qc/0701036,
title = {Higher dimensional spacetimes with a geodesic, shearfree, twistfree and expanding null congruence},
author = {Marcello Ortaggio},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:gr-qc/0701036},
year = {2007}
}
Comments
1+12 pages. Proceedings of the XVII SIGRAV Conference, Turin, September 4--7, 2006. v2: minor changes