The $k$-essence modified $f(R)$ gravity model, i.e., $f(R,ϕ,X)$ theory is studied. The question of violation of causality, in the framework of Gödel-type universes, is investigated in this gravitational model. Causal and non-causal solutions are allowed. A critical radius for non-causal solution is calculated. It is shown that the violation of causality depends on the content of matter.
Field theories whose full action is Lorentz invariant (or diffeomorphism invariant) can exhibit superluminal behaviors through the breaking of local Lorentz invariance. Quantum induced superluminal velocities are well-known examples of this effect. The issue of the causal behavior of such propagations is somewhat controversial in the literature and we intend to clarify it. We provide a careful analysis of the meaning of causality in classical relativistic field theories, and we stress the role played by the Cauchy problem and the notions of chronology and time arrow. We show that superluminal …
The k-essence theories admit in general the superluminal propagation of the perturbations on classical backgrounds. We show that in spite of the superluminal propagation the causal paradoxes do not arise in these theories and in this respect they are not less safe than General Relativity.
It is proven that K-causality coincides with stable causality, and that in a K-causal spacetime the relation K^+ coincides with the Seifert's relation. As a consequence the causal relation "the spacetime is strongly causal and the closure of the causal relation is transitive" stays between stable causality and causal continuity.
A unifying framework for the study of causal relations is presented. The causal relations are regarded as subsets of M x M and the role of the corresponding antisymmetry conditions in the construction of the causal ladder is stressed. The causal hierarchy of spacetime is built from chronology up to K-causality and new characterizations of the distinction and strong causality properties are obtained. The closure of the causal future is not transitive, as a consequence its repeated composition leads to an infinite causal subladder between strong causality and K-causality - the A-causality sublad…
We show that singularities necessarily occur when a boundary of causality violating set exists in a space-time under the physically suitable assumptions except the global causality condition in the Hawking-Penrose singularity theorems. Instead of the global causality condition, we impose some restrictions on the causality violating sets to show the occurrence of singularities.
The problems causality and causality violation in topologically nontrivial space-time models are considered. To this end the mixed boundary problem for traversable wormhole models is formulated and the influence of the boundary conditions on the causal properties of space-time is analyzed
By definition a spacetime is stably causal if it is possible to widen the light cones all over the spacetime without spoiling causality. We prove that if the spacetime is at least non-total imprisoning then it is stably causal provided the light cones can be widened outside any compact arbitrarily large set, i.e. in a neighborhood of infinity, without spoiling causality. Furthermore, we prove that the new causality level `compact stable causality' can be obtained as the antisymmetry condition of a new causal relation which we identify, but it cannot be obtained as a causal stability condition …
Hawking's stable causality implies Sorkin and Woolgar's K-causality. The work investigates the possible equivalence between the two causality requirements, an issue which was first considered by H. Seifert and then raised again by R. Low after the introduction of K-causality. First, a new proof is given that a spacetime is stably causal iff the Seifert causal relation is a partial order. It is then shown that given a K-causal spacetime and chosen an event, the light cones can be widened in a neighborhood of the event without spoiling K-causality. The idea is that this widening of the light con…
In this paper, we address the problem of causality violation in the solutions of Einstein equations and seek possible causality restoration mechanisms in modifed theories of gravity. We choose for the above problem, the causality violation due to the existence of closed time-like curves in the context of Kerr-Newman black hole. We first revisit and quantify the details of the causality violation in the Kerr-Newman spacetime. We then show that the issue is also existent in two of the modified solutions to the Kerr Newman spacetime: The Non-Commutativity inspired solution and the f(R)-Gravity mo…
We investigate the instability of the Cauchy horizon caused by causality violation in the compact vacuum universe with the topology $B\times {\bf S}^{1}\times {\bf R}$, which Moncrief and Isenberg considered. We show that if the occurrence of curvature singularities are restricted to the boundary of causality violating region, the whole segments of the boundary become curvature singularities. This implies that the strong cosmic censorship holds in the spatially compact vacuum space-time in the case of the causality violation. This also suggests that causality violation cannot occur for a compa…
In this paper, the Gödel-type solutions within the k-essence theory are investigated. The consistency of field equations, causality violation and existence of closed timelike curves are studied. The conditions for existence of Gödel and Gödel-type solutions are determined for any function that defines the k-essence. By taking different sources of matter, it is shown that this theory of gravity allows causal and non-causal Gödel-type solutions.
In this paper a systematic study of the causal structure and global causality properties of multiwarped spacetimes is developed. This analysis is used to make a detailed description of the causal boundary of these spacetimes. Some applications of our results in examples of physical interest, for instance, in the context of Maldacena's conjecture, are considered.
We describe how the Barrett-Crane spin foam model defines transition amplitudes for quantum gravity states and how causality can be consistently implemented in it.
For over 25 years, a solution has existed to Einstein's vacuum equation that describes a space-time with two Kerr black holes. First formulated by Kramer and Neugebauer (KN) in 1980 [1], this solution has been extensively researched by many, with many and varied implications. One of which is causality violation.
We present an axially symmetric spacetime which contains closed timelike curves, and hence violates the causality condition. The metric belongs to type III in the Petrov classification scheme with vanishing expansion, shear and twist. The matter-energy represents a pure radiation field with a negative cosmological constant. The spacetime is asymptotically anti-de Sitter space in the radial direction.
We consider how causality and micro-causality are realised in QED in curved spacetime. The photon propagator is found to exhibit novel non-analytic behaviour due to vacuum polarization, which invalidates the Kramers-Kronig dispersion relation and calls into question the validity of micro-causality in curved spacetime. This non-analyticity is ultimately related to the generic focusing nature of congruences of geodesics in curved spacetime, as implied by the null energy condition, and the existence of conjugate points. These results arise from a calculation of the complete non-perturbative frequ…
We study the causal structure of a class of weakly nonlocal gravitational theories (eventually coupled to matter) that are compatible with perturbative unitarity and finiteness at quantum level. In particular, we show that in nonlocal quantum gravity a Shapiro's time advance never occurs. Moreover, we provide a recipe to construct a general ultraviolet complete gravitational theory coupled to matter (with or without supersymmetry) compatible with causality. Therefore, nonlocal gravity is consistent with causality, as well as string theory.
Analysis of a massive shell collapsing on a solid sphere shows that black hole complementarity (BHC) violates causality in its effort to save information conservation. In particular, this note describes a hypothetical contraption based on BHC that would allow the transfer of information from the future to the present.
This is a chapter of the planned monograph "Out of Nowhere: The Emergence of Spacetime in Quantum Theories of Gravity", co-authored by Nick Huggett and Christian Wüthrich and under contract with Oxford University Press. (More information at www.beyondspacetime.net.) This chapter introduces causal set theory and identifies and articulates a 'problem of space' in this theory.
Causal structure of the brane universe with respect to null geodesics in the bulk spacetime is studied. It is pointed out that apparent causality violation is possible for the brane universe which contains matter energy. It is also shown that there is no 'horizon problem' in the Friedmann-Robertson-Walker brane universe.
We show that causality constrains the sign of quartic Riemann corrections to the Einstein-Hilbert action. Our constraint constitutes a restriction on candidate theories of quantum gravity.
Causality in quantum field theory is defined by the vanishing of field commutators for space-like separations. However, this does not imply a direction for causal effects. Hidden in our conventions for quantization is a connection to the definition of an arrow of causality, i.e. what is the past and what is the future. If we mix quantization conventions within the same theory, we get a violation of microcausality. In such a theory with mixed conventions the dominant definition of the arrow of causality is determined by the stable states. In some quantum gravity theories, such as quadratic grav…
We examine the question as to whether the f(R) gravity theories, in both metric and in Palatini formalisms, permit space-times in which the causality is violated. We show that the field equations of these f(R) gravity theories admit solutions with violation of causality for a physically well-motivated perfect-fluid matter content.
Drawing from the theory of optimal transport we propose a rigorous notion of a causal relation for Borel probability measures on a given spacetime. To prepare the ground, we explore the borderland between causality, topology and measure theory. We provide various characterisations of the proposed causal relation, which turn out to be equivalent if the underlying spacetime has a sufficiently robust causal structure. We also present the notion of the 'Lorentz-Wasserstein distance' and study its basic properties. Finally, we discuss how various results on causality in quantum theory, aggregated a…