paper

Quasilocal Energy and Conserved Charges Derived from the Gravitational Action

arXiv:gr-qc/9209012 · doi:10.1103/PhysRevD.47.1407

Abstract

The quasilocal energy of gravitational and matter fields in a spatially bounded region is obtained by employing a Hamilton-Jacobi analysis of the action functional. First, a surface stress-energy-momentum tensor is defined by the functional derivative of the action with respect to the three-metric on , the history of the system's boundary. Energy density, momentum density, and spatial stress are defined by projecting the surface stress tensor normally and tangentially to a family of spacelike two-surfaces that foliate . The integral of the energy density over such a two-surface is the quasilocal energy associated with a spacelike three-surface whose intersection with is the boundary . The resulting expression for quasilocal energy is given in terms of the total mean curvature of the spatial boundary as a surface embedded in . The quasilocal energy is also the value of the Hamiltonian that generates unit magnitude proper time translations on in the direction orthogonal to . Conserved charges such as angular momentum are defined using the surface stress tensor and Killing vector fields on . For spacetimes that are asymptotically flat in spacelike directions, the quasilocal energy and angular momentum defined here agree with the results of Arnowitt-Deser-Misner in the limit that the boundary tends to spatial infinity. For spherically symmetric spacetimes, it is shown that the quasilocal energy has the correct Newtonian limit, and includes a negative contribution due to gravitational binding.

35 pages, plain TeX. Two figures available upon request ([email protected])

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