On the asymptotic behavior of static perfect fluids (Q1729819)

In this article, the authors examine the asymptotical shape of various static perfect fluid space-times. Understanding the structure and evolution of stars in the framework of general relativity is a central problem in both theoretical physics and observational astronomy. Mathematically it can be formulated as studying the static, asymptotically flat solutions of the Einstein equation \(R_{ij}-\frac{1}{2}Rg_{ij}=8\pi T_{ij}\) with a compactly supported perfect fluid matter content i.e., with a divergence-free energy-momentum tensor of the shape \(T_{ij}=(\rho +p)u_iu_j+pg_{ij}\) where \(\rho\) is interpreted as the energy density, \(p\) as the pressure while \(u_i\) as the four-velocity (normalized to \(-1\)) of the relativistic fluid. Taking into account the affirmative solution of the so-called fluid ball conjecture, one can assume that a static, asymptotically flat perfect fluid space-time is spherically symmetric consequently the original Einstein equation reduces to a non-linear system of ODE's in two unknown functions \(p(r)\) and \(\rho (r)\): \[ \left\{\begin{aligned} m'&=4\pi r^2\rho\\ p'&=-\frac{\rho m}{r^2}\left( 1+\frac{p}{\rho}\right)\left( 1+\frac{4\pi r^3p}{m}\right)\left( 1-\frac{2m}{r}\right)^{-1}\\ p &=E(\rho ) \end{aligned}\right. \] where \(m(r) =4\pi\int_0^rs^2\rho (s)\mathrm{d}s\) is the mass function and \(p =E(\rho )\) is an ``equation of state'' set up by taking into account some physical properties of the perfect fluid. (Without imposing it, the original problem would be under-determined.) In this article the authors investigate the problem of describing the asymptotical shape of perfect fluid space-times satisfying various equations of state. The main results of the paper are as follows: (i) for a linear equation of state \(p=K\rho\) with \(K\in (0,1)\) the asymptotics can be described in terms of so-called \textit{quasi-asymptotically flat} (or \(AF\alpha\)) space-times (for a precise statement see Definition 1.1 and Theorem 1.2 in the article); (ii) for a polytropic equation of state \(p=K\rho^{\frac{n+1}{n}}\) with \(K\in (0,1)\) and fixed \(n>5\) and central density \(\rho_0\), the resulting solution is a so-called \textit{scaled quasi-asymptotically flat} (or \(AF\alpha\beta\)) space-time (for a precise statement see Definition 1.3 and Theorem 1.5 in the article). In addition, several special, intermediate, etc. cases of state equations are studied, too, moreover various ADM-like mass concepts are also examined in detail in the article.