Related papers: Gravity, energy conservation and parameter values …
In order to study the gravitational collapse of charged matter we analyze the simple model of an self-gravitating massless scalar field coupled to the electromagnetic field in spherical symmetry. The evolution equations for the…
It is well-known that in unimodular gravity the cosmological constant is not sourced by a constant energy density, but rather appears as some sort of integration constant. In this work we try to flesh this out by studying in some detail a…
Astrophysical systems, such as clumps that form star clusters share a density profile that is close to $\rho \sim r^{-2}$. We prove analytically this density profile is the result of the scale-free nature of the gravitational collapse.…
I present a simple argument for why a fundamental theory that unifies matter and gravity gives rise to what seems to be a collapse of the wavefunction. The resulting model is local, parameter-free and makes testable predictions.
We deal with a dynamical mechanism in which a large cosmological constant, as suggested by inflationary scenarios, decays due to expansion of the universe. This mechanism has its origin in the gravitational coupling of the vacuum density.…
Within the context of scalar-tensor gravity, we explore the generalized second law (GSL) of gravitational thermodynamics. We extend the action of ordinary scalar-tensor gravity theory to the case in which there is a non-minimal coupling…
We study a model where two scalar fields, that are subdominant during inflation, decay into radiation some time after inflation has ended but before primordial nucleosynthesis. Perturbations of these two curvaton fields can be responsible…
This article reviews classical and quantum aspects of critical phenomena in gravitational collapse. We pay special attention to the origin of the scaling law for black hole mass, and to phase transitions in which black hole formation turns…
We show that it is possible to steer clear of a spacetime singularity during gravitational collapse by considering the time-variation of a fundamental coupling, in this case, the fine structure constant {\alpha}. We study a spherical…
We examine the dynamics of a closed cosmology whose matter source is that of a conformally coupled scalar field with a broken ${\rm SO}(1,1)$ symmetry, which correspond to the $\alpha$-attractors proposed by Linde and Kallosh. Following a…
We consider the problem of critical gravitational collapse of a scalar field in 2+1 dimensions with spherical (circular) symmetry. After surveying all the analytic, continuously self-similar solutions and considering their global structure,…
An introduction to the CSL (Continuous Spontaneous Localization) theory of dynamical wave function collapse is provided, including a derivation of CSL from two postulates. There follows applications to a free particle, or to a `small' rigid…
We study the statistical properties of the gravitational field generated by galaxy distribution observed bythe Sloan Digital Sky Survey (DR7). We characterize the probability density function of gravitational force fluctuations and relate…
Five-vectors theory of gravity is proposed, which admits an arbitrary choice of the energy density reference level. This theory is formulated as the constraint theory, where the Lagrange multipliers turn out to be restricted to some class…
Unimodular gravity is an appealing approach to address the cosmological constant problem. In this scenario, the vacuum energy density of quantum fields does not gravitate and the cosmological constant appears merely as an integration…
We give a twist to the assumption - discussed in various earlier works - that gravity plays a role in the collapse of the wave function. This time we discuss the contrary assumption that the collapse of the wave function plays a role in the…
We consider a scalar-tensor theory of gravitation with the scalar source being the trace of the stress-energy tensor of the scalar field itself and matter. We obtain an example of a numerical solution of the cosmological equations which…
In the gravitational collapse of matter beyond spherical symmetry, gravitational waves are necessarily present. On the other hand, gravitational waves can collapse to a black hole even without matter. One might therefore wonder whether the…
Using the concept of open systems where the classical geometry is treated as the system and the quantum matter field as the environment, we derive a fluctuation-dissipation theorem for semiclassical cosmology. This theorem which exists…
Several mechanisms have been identified that create dense particle clumps in the solar nebula. The present work is concerned with the gravitational collapse of such clumps, idealized as being spherically symmetric. Calculations using the…