New identities for linearized gravity on the Kerr spacetime

DOI10.1103/PHYSREVD.99.044043WikidataQ128346385 ScholiaQ128346385MaRDI QIDQ6269596FDOQ6269596

Authors Steffen Aksteiner, Lars Andersson, Thomas Bäckdahl 

Publication date 22 January 2016

Mathematics Subject Classification ID

Classes of solutions; algebraically special solutions, metrics with symmetries for problems in general relativity and gravitational theory (83C20) Spinor and twistor methods in general relativity and gravitational theory; Newman-Penrose formalism (83C60)

Abstract: In this paper we derive a differential identity for linearized gravity on the Kerr spacetime and more generally on vacuum spacetimes of Petrov type D. We show that a linear combination of second derivatives of the linearized Weyl tensor can be formed into a complex symmetric 2-tensor $mathcal{M}_{ab}$ which solves the linearized Einstein equations. The identity makes this manifest by relating $mathcal{M}_{ab}$ to two terms solving the linearized Einstein equations by construction. The self-dual Weyl curvature of $mathcal{M}_{ab}$ gives a covariant version of the Teukolsky-Starobinsky identities for linearized gravity which, in addition to the two classical identities for linearized Weyl scalars with extreme spin weights, includes three additional equations. In particular, they are not consequences of the classical Teukolsky-Starobinsky identities, but are additional integrability conditions for linearized gravity. The result has direct application in the construction of symmetry operators and also yields a set of non-trivial gauge invariants for linearized gravity.

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