${\rm w}_{1+\infty}$ in 4D Gravitational Scattering
Abstract
In four-dimensional asymptotically flat spacetimes, an infinite tower of soft graviton modes is known to generate the symmetry algebra of at tree-level. Here we demonstrate that the symmetry action follows from soft graviton theorems and acts non-trivially on massive scalar particles. By generalizing previous analyses that were specifically tailored to the scattering of massless particles, our results clarify that symmetry is a universal feature of tree-level gravitational scattering in four-dimensional asymptotically flat spacetimes and originates from minimally-coupled gravitational interactions. In addition, we show that the symmetry acts non-diagonally on massive states by mixing an infinite number of conformal families. We also present a concrete example of non-local behavior on the celestial sphere in the presence of massive scattering states.
Keywords
Cite
@article{arxiv.2312.08597,
title = {${\rm w}_{1+\infty}$ in 4D Gravitational Scattering},
author = {Elizabeth Himwich and Monica Pate},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:2312.08597},
year = {2023}
}
Comments
36 pages plus references