SPINBHMICRO · New Horizons for Holography

Black holes are among the most intriguing objects in theoretical physics. They are thermodynamic ensembles and they possess huge entropy, proportional to the area of the event horizon. Black hole entropy provides precious quantitative information about the microscopic structure of quantum gravity: its holographic behavior suggests that the quantum degrees of freedom of gravity are encoded in a lower-dimensional field theory. The first aim of this ambitious project is to make progress in understanding the nature of quantum gravity by using String Theory and the holographic (AdS/CFT) correspondence. The candidate will use AdS/CFT to explain the microstructure of extremal rotating black holes, whose near horizon geometry falls into the same class as those present in our universe. The counting of microstates is related to very recent exciting technical advances in the study of supersymmetric QFT by exact non-perturbative methods. The applicant will push current techniques to encompass also supersymmetry breaking setups, providing a new window into the fundamental microscopic theory of gravity. The second aim of this proposal is to investigate the process of energy extraction from fast spinning black holes. The candidate will solve the equations of Force Free Electrodynamics, which describe the electromagnetic field of the black hole magnetosphere filled with plasma, in a simplified setup of spinning black hole. She will analytically achieve a quantitative estimate of potential observational consequences, for instance the order of magnitude of the Lorentz factor of accelerated particles in black hole jets. The expertise of the candidate in black holes and holography complements that of the group at Harvard U. (Black Hole Initiative) and Milano U. in index computations, Kerr/CFT and magnetohydrodynamics, providing a unique opportunity to shed new light on these open questions.