http://arxiv.org/abs/1312.4017
The recent discovery of a pulsar orbiting a black hole opens up new possibilities for tests of theories of gravity. We examine possible observational effects of semiclassical quantum gravity in the vicinity of black holes, as probed by pulsars and event horizon telescope imaging of flares. Pulsar radiation is observable at wavelengths only two orders of magnitude shorter than the Hawking radiation, so precision interferometry of lensed pulsar images may shed light on the quantum gravitational processes and interaction of Hawking radiation with the spacetime near the black hole. In the picture of Black Hole Complementarity (BHC), the pulsar radiation field is a low energy probe, and subject to quantum gravitational effects, while the pulsar itself is a classical object. This paper discusses the impact on the pulsar radiation interference pattern, which may be observable in the foreseeable future, and discusses a possible classical limit of BHC.
Tue, 17 Dec 13
12/78