- The paper demonstrates that typical black holes exhibit firewalls at the event horizon when analyzed through dual field theory.
- It uses effective field theory and dual state projections to challenge the feasibility of reconstructing a smooth black hole interior and the ER=EPR conjecture.
- The study reveals that firewall presence does not alter Hawking radiation predictions, highlighting limits in reconstructing spacetime solely via gauge/gravity duality.
Analyzing Black Hole Firewalls through Gauge/Gravity Duality
The paper "Gauge/Gravity Duality and the Black Hole Interior" by Donald Marolf and Joseph Polchinski examines the implications of gauge/gravity duality for the internal structure of black holes, specifically the presence of firewalls at the event horizon. This work proposes that the typical states of black holes, when viewed through the lens of dual field theory, inherently possess firewalls, challenging traditional perceptions of the black hole horizon as a smooth, vacuum-like boundary.
The discussion commences with the assertion that, under gauge/gravity duality, quantum gravity in spacetimes with specific boundary conditions can be effectively constructed. In this framework, the authors examine whether typical black holes necessitate the presence of firewalls, engaging with recent debates in the field. They argue that, absent any significant deviations from effective field theory, firewalls at the horizon are typical for black holes. This notion diverges from previous arguments suggesting high entanglement between the black hole and external systems and aligns more closely with the idea that black holes formed by direct collapse exhibit firewalls.
The paper explores the potential inferences of reconstructing the black hole interior using dual field theory (DFT). The authors critique the ER=EPR conjecture, positing that generic entangled states of two field theories do not readily translate into geometries interpretable as smooth wormholes. The argument asserts that DFT states projected onto specific energy ranges yield eigenstates insufficient to eliminate firewalls, and that such internal states are not highly excited, rebutting the assumption that mapping internal and external degrees of freedom could mitigate firewall presence.
Moreover, the implications of Hawking radiation calculations persist with or without firewalls, contradicting the expectation that these anomalies would alter Hawking's original predictions. The paper advocates that the fundamental thermofield state exhibits characteristics of an extended anti-de Sitter (AdS) Schwarzschild geometry, necessitating further exploration into whether the firewall paradigm can be rationalized within the broader quantum gravitational context.
The analysis concludes that present considerations of black hole interiors reveal inherent limits in reconstructing spacetime via gauge/gravity duality alone, raising pivotal questions regarding the core assumptions underpinning black hole physics. The exploration of typical black hole states, alongside the critique of widely-held conjectures like ER=EPR, paves the way for future advancements in the theoretical understanding of quantum gravity, quantum cosmology, and the enigmatic nature of black holes.