We consider the back reaction of the energy due to quantum fluctuation of the background fields considering the trace anomaly for Schwarzschild black hole. It is shown that it will result in modification of the horizon and also formation of an inner horizon. We show that the process of collapse of a thin shell stops before formation of the singularity at a radius slightly smaller than the inner horizon at the order of $(c_{A}\frac{M}{M_p})^{1/3}l_p$. After the collapse stops the reverse process takes place. Thus we demonstrate that without turning on quantum gravity and just through the effects the coupling of field to gravity as trace anomaly of quantum fluctuations the formation of the singularity through collapse is obstructed. An important consequence of our work is existence of an extremal solution with zero temperature and a mass which is lower bound for the Schwazschild solution. This solution is also the asymptotic final stable state after Hawking radiation.
It is often said that there is no gravity theory based on local action principles giving rise to firewall black hole solutions. Additionally, Guo and Mathur [Int. J. Mod. Phys. D 31, 2242009 (2022).] have cast doubt on the observability of firewall echoes due to the closed trapped surface produced by a backreaction of macroscopic in-falling wave packets. In this paper, we bring Einstein-Maxwell-Dilaton action as a toy model that serves as counterexample to these assertions. Actions with Maxwell and dilaton fields emerge from several fundamental theories, such as the low energy limit of (super) string theory or Kaluza-Klein compactifications. In these systems, the black hole solution has two curvature singularities. We will show that the outer singularity inside the event horizon can cause significant change to the outside, close to the extremal limit, making a macroscopic reflective barrier near the event horizon that would lead to ``observable'' gravitational wave echoes in this toy model. Additionally, we also call into question the argument by Guo et al. [J. High Energy Phys. 07 (2018) 162.] claiming that a very small fraction of the backscattered photons will be able to escape back to infinity from the firewall, using these black holes as a counterexample.
Being arguably the most massive binary black hole merger event observed to date, GW190521 deserves special attention. The exceptionally loud ringdown of this merger makes it an ideal candidate to search for gravitational wave echoes, a proposed smoking gun for the quantum structure of black hole horizons. We perform an unprecedented multi-pronged search for echoes via two well-established and independent pipelines: a template-based search for stimulated emission of Hawking radiation, or Boltzmann echoes, and the model-agnostic coherent WaveBurst (cWB) search. Stimulated Hawking radiation from the merger is expected to lead to post-merger echoes at horizon mode frequency of $\sim50$ Hz (for quadrupolar gravitational radiation), repeating at intervals of $\sim1$ second, due to partial reflection off Planckian quantum structure of the horizon. A careful analysis using dynamic nested sampling yields a Bayesian evidence of $8^{+4}_{-2}$ (90\% confidence level) for this signal following GW190521, carrying an excess of $6^{+10}_{-5}\%$ in gravitational wave energy, relative to the main event (consistent with the predicted amplitude of Boltzmann echoes). The "look-elsewhere" effect is estimated by using General Relativity (plus Boltzmann echoes) injections in real data, around the event, giving a false (true) positive detection probability for higher Bayes factors of $1.5^{+1.2}_{-0.9}\%$ ($35\pm7\%$). Similarly, the reconstructed waveform of the first echo in cWB carries an energy excess of $13^{+16}_{-7}\%$. While the current evidence for stimulated Hawking radiation does not reach the gold standard of $5\sigma$ (or p-value $<3\times10^{-7}$), our findings are in line with expectations for stimulated Hawking radiation at current detector sensitivities. The next generation of gravitational wave observatories can thus draw a definitive conclusion on the quantum nature of black hole horizons.
In a recent paper (arXiv:1612.00266), we reported the results of the first search for echoes from Planck-scale modifications of general relativity near black hole event horizons using the public data release by the Advanced LIGO gravitational wave observatory. While we found tentative evidence (at $\simeq 3 σ$ level) for the presence of these echoes, our statistical methodology was challenged by Ashton, et al. (arXiv:1612.05625), just in time for the holidays! In this short note, we briefly address these criticisms, arguing that they either do not affect our conclusion or change its significance by $\lesssim 0.3σ$. The real test will be whether our finding can be reproduced by independent groups using independent methodologies (and ultimately more data).
In this paper the question of the emission of fermions in the process of dilaton black hole evolution and its characteristics for different dilaton coupling constants α are studied. The main quantity of interest, the greybody factors, are calculated both numerically and in analytical approximation. The dependence of the rates of evaporation and behaviour on the dilaton coupling constant is analysed. Having calculated the greybody factors, we are able to address the question of the final fate of the dilaton black hole. For that we also need to perform dynamical treatment of the solution by considering the backreaction, which will show a crucial effect on the final result. We find a transition line in the plane that separates the two regimes for the fate of the black hole, decay regime and extremal regime. In the decay regime the black hole completely evaporates, while in the extremal regime the black hole approaches the extremal limit by radiation and becomes stable.
One of the major aims of gravitational wave astronomy is to observationally test the Kerr nature of black holes. The strongest such test, with minimal additional assumptions, is provided by observations of multiple ringdown modes, also known as black hole spectroscopy. For the gravitational wave merger event GW190521, we have previously claimed the detection of two ringdown modes emitted by the remnant black hole. In this paper we provide further evidence for the detection of multiple ringdown modes from this event. We analyse the recovery of simulated gravitational wave signals designed to replicate the ringdown properties of GW190521. We quantify how often our detection statistic reports strong evidence for a sub-dominant $(\ell,m,n)=(3,3,0)$ ringdown mode, even when no such mode is present in the simulated signal. We find this only occurs with a probability $\sim 0.02$, which is consistent with a Bayes factor of $56\pm1$ (1$\sigma$ uncertainty) found for GW190521. We also quantify our agnostic analysis of GW190521, in which no relationship is assumed between ringdown modes, and find that only 1 in 250 simulated signals without a $(3,3,0)$ mode yields a result as significant as GW190521. Conversely, we verify that when simulated signals do have an observable $(3,3,0)$ mode they consistently yield a strong evidence and significant agnostic results. We also find that simulated GW190521-like signals with a $(3,3,0)$ mode present yield tight constraints on deviations of that mode from Kerr, whereas constraints on the $(2,2,1)$ overtone of the dominant mode yield wide constraints that are not consistent with Kerr. These results on simulated signals are similar to what we find for GW190521. Our results strongly support our previous conclusion that the gravitational wave signal from GW190521 contains an observable sub-dominant $(\ell,m,n)=(3,3,0)$ mode.
When two black holes merge, the late stage of gravitational wave emission is a superposition of exponentially damped sinusoids. According to the black hole no-hair theorem, this ringdown spectrum depends only on the mass and angular momentum of the final black hole. An observation of more than one ringdown mode can test this fundamental prediction of general relativity. Here, we provide strong observational evidence for a multimode black hole ringdown spectrum using the gravitational wave event GW190521, with a maximum Bayes factor of 56±1 (1σ uncertainty) preferring two fundamental modes over one. The dominant mode is the ℓ=m=2 harmonic, and the subdominant mode corresponds to the ℓ=m=3 harmonic. The amplitude of this mode relative to the dominant harmonic is estimated to be A_{330}/A_{220}=0.2_{-0.1}^{+0.2}. We estimate the redshifted mass and dimensionless spin of the final black hole as 330_{-40}^{+30}M_{⊙} and 0.86_{-0.11}^{+0.06}, respectively. We find that the final black hole is consistent with the no-hair theorem and constrain the fractional deviation from general relativity of the subdominant mode's frequency to be -0.01_{-0.09}^{+0.08}.
Black are possibly the most enigmatic objects in our Universe. From their detection in gravitational waves upon their mergers, to their snapshot eating at the centres of galaxies, black hole astrophysics has undergone an observational renaissance in the past 4 years. Nevertheless, they remain active playgrounds for strong gravity and quantum effects, where novel aspects of the elusive theory of quantum gravity may be hard at work. In this review article, we provide an overview of the strong motivations for why Quantum Black Holes may be radically different from their classical counterparts in Einstein's General Relativity. We then discuss the observational signatures of quantum black holes, focusing on gravitational wave echoes as smoking guns for quantum horizons (or exotic compact objects), which have led to significant recent excitement and activity. We review the theoretical underpinning of gravitational wave echoes and critically examine the seemingly contradictory observational claims regarding their (non-)existence. Finally, we discuss the future theoretical and observational landscape for unraveling the Quantum Black in the Sky.