Gravitational interaction of two spinning particles in general relativity. II (Q2266591)

This paper presents some improvements on and extensions of Part I by the first two authors [ibid. 14, 439-451 (1982; Zbl 0485.70009)]. The basic hypothesis is represented by the relativistic equations of motion of a pole-dipole particle in a gravitational field as proposed by \textit{A. Papapetrou} [Proc. R. Soc. Lond. Ser. A 209, 248-258 (1951; Zbl 0044.228)]. These equations involve an intrinsic angular momentum tensor \(S^{\alpha \beta}\) and specify the covariant derivatives of the momentum vector and \(S^{\alpha \beta}\) along the trajectory. An expansion of these equations in powers of the constant of gravitation is given up to the first order. A spin vector is defined in a natural manner in terms of \(S^{\alpha \beta}\) and the momentum vector, and the relationship between the spin vector in a natural frame and the spin vector as seen in a comoving orthogonal frame is analyzed. A regularization procedure is discussed in detail. Previously known results regarding the precession are re-derived by means of an expansion of the equations of motion of the spin vector in the comoving frame.