NAME Classical Black Holes

STUDENT ID Exercise 01. Newtonian Gravity and 2021-02-25

EMAIL General Relativity review

1 Newtonian Gravity
1.1 Poisson equation
Show explicitly that Poisson’s Equation,
∇2 Φ = 4πGρ,
is invariant under Galilean Transformations.

1.2 Gravitational and Electric Fields in Positronium

Positronium is a meta-stable bound state of an electron and a positron. Compare the Coulomb force with the
Newtonian gravitational force, by calculating the electrostatic and gravitational force between the electron and
the positron considering that they are separated by a distance of an Angstrom. Calculate how heavy would an
electron have to be so that the Coulomb force equals the Newtonian gravitational force in the positronium
system.

1.3 Newtonian Equation of Motion

Show that the Newtonian equation of motion of a test particle in a Newtonian gravitational potential Φ can be
written as a geodesic equation in a 4-dimensional spacetime.
Write the corresponding connection components and compute the Riemann tensor.

2 Special Relativity
2.1 Minkowski and Euclidean spacetime
Show that the neither the Minkowskian line element,

ds2 = −c2 dt2 + dx2 + dy 2 + dz 2

nor the Euclidean line element

ds2 = c2 dt2 + dx2 + dy 2 + dz 2
are invariant under Galilean Transformations.

2.2 Energy of a relativistic particle

A particle of proper mass m0 and momentum pµ is examined by an observer moving with velocity U α . Show
that the relativistic energy of the particle measured by the observer is

E = pµ Uµ

2.3 Invariant?
Is the determinant of the Minkowskian metric tensor,

η = det [ηµν ] ,

a relativistic invariant?

1
2.4 Minkowski metric in rotating coordinates
Consider Minkowski’s metric
ds2 = ηµν dsµ dsν = −c2 dt2 + dx2 + dy 2 + dz 2 .
Introduce the ”rotating coordinates”
t=t
x = r cos (δ − ωt)
y = r sin (δ − ωt)
z=z
where p
r = x2 + y 2
and
y
δ = arctan .
x
Find the components of the metric gµν and its inverse g µν in the new coordinates.

2.5 2-dim Minkowski spacetime

Show that the 2-dimensional space with line element
ds2 = dv 2 − v 2 du2
is equivalent to Minkowski spacetime in 2 dimensions,
ds2 = −dt2 + dx2 .
Find the transformation relations
v = v(t, x)
u = u(t, x).

3 General Relativity
3.1 Geometrical Units
Geometrical units are physical units where we set: c = G = 1, where c is the vacuum speed of light, and G is
Newton’s gravitational constant. Calculate the following quantities in natural units: age of the Universe, radius
of visible Universe, cosmological constant, mass of the Sun, mass of the Earth, mass of the proton, mass of the
electron.

3.2 Lie derivative

Find the definition of the Lie Derivative and show that for any vector fields Aµ and X α , the Lie derivative
LX Aµ and the covariant derivatives are related by
LX Aµ = X α ∇α Aµ − Aα ∇α X µ .
Find the corresponding relation for the Lie derivative of a second-order tensor, LX T µν .

3.3 Conformal Transformations

Show that under a conformal transformation,
gµν −→ Ω (x) gµν ,
where Ω (x) is an arbitrary function of the coordinates, leave invariant the angle between vectors. Show that
under this kind of transformation null curves remain null.

2
3.4 Spherical Coordinates
Consider the 3-dimensional Euclidean metric

ds2 = dx2 + dy 2 + dz 2

We introduce the spherical coordinates (r, θ, φ) by the relations

x = r sin θ cos φ
y = r sin θ sin φ
z = r cos θ

Find the line element in the new coordinates.

3.5 Prolate Coordinates

Consider the 3-dimensional Euclidean metric

ds2 = dx2 + dy 2 + dz 2 .

We introduce the prolate coordinates (χ, θ, φ) by the relations

x = sinh χ sin θ cos φ

y = sinh χ sin θ sin φ
z = cosh χ cos θ

Find the line element in the new coordinates.

3.6 Action for a free particle

Show that the actions
Z τ2 
1 α β
S1 = − gαβ ẋ ẋ dτ
τ 2
Z 1τ2
1
−gαβ ẋα ẋβ 2 dτ

S2 =
τ1

give the same geodesic equations.

3.7 Connections
Show that the components of the connection Γα
µν does not obey the tensor transformation law.

3.8 Connections for a 2-dim Spacetime

Consider the 2-dimensional space described with the line element
1
ds2 = f (r)dr2 + dθ2 ,
f (r)

where f (r) is any function of the coordinate r. Find the components of the connection Γα
µν for this metric.

3
3.9 Geodesics in a 2-dim Spacetime
Consider the 2-dimensional space described by the metric

ds2 = dr2 + r2 dθ2 .

Find the geodesic equations in this space and show that the can be written as

dθ
r2= ` = constant
ds
 2  2
dr dθ
+ r2 = 1.
ds ds

3.10 Geodesics and Affine Parameters

An affine parameter λ is one for which the geodesic equation takes the homogeneous form

d2 xµ α
µ dx dx
β
+ Γ αβ = 0.
dλ2 dλ dλ
Show that any parameter defined as a linear transformation of λ with linear coefficients a and b,

ζ = aλ + b

is also an affine parameter.

3.11 Einstein Tensor

Show that Bianchi identities imply that the Einstein tensor has vanishing divergence,

∇ν Gµν = 0.

3.12 Killing Equation

Solve Killing’s equations to find the Killing vector fields for the space described by the line element

ds2 = dθ2 + sin2 θdφ2 .

3.13 Killing vectors

• Show that the commutator of two Killing vector fields is a Killing vector field.
• Show that a linear combination of two Killing vector fields with constant coefficients is a Killing vector
field.