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Concept information

high-energy astrophysics > black hole > Hawking effect
stellar astronomy > stellar remnant > compact object > black hole > Hawking effect
... > theoretical physics aspects > field theory > classical field theory > electromagnetism > electromagnetic radiation > thermal radiation > Hawking effect

Preferred term

Hawking effect  

Definition(s)

  • The radiation produced by a black hole when quantum mechanical effects are taken into account. According to quantum physics, large fluctuations in the vacuum energy occurs for brief moments of time. Thereby virtual particle-antiparticle pairs are created from vacuum and annihilated. If pair production happens just outside the event horizon of a black hole, as soon as these particles are formed they would both experience drastically different gravitational attractions due to the sharp gradient of force close to the black hole. One particle will accelerate toward the black hole and its partner will escape into space. The black hole used some of its gravitational energy to produce these two particles, so it loses some of its mass if a particle escapes. This gradual loss of mass over time means the black hole eventually evaporates out of existence. Named after the British physicist Stephen Hawking (1942-2018), who provided the theoretical argument for the existence of the radiation in 1974. (An Etymological Dictionary of Astronomy and Astrophysics, by M. Heydari-Malayeri, https://dictionary.obspm.fr/index.php?formSearchTextfield=hawking+radiation&formSubmit=Search&showAll=1)

Broader concept(s)

Synonym(s)

  • black hole evaporation
  • Hawking radiation

In other languages

  • effet Hawking

    French

  • évaporation des trous noirs
  • rayonnement de Hawking

URI

http://data.loterre.fr/ark:/67375/MDL-FK9L9ZF3-0

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