Why should radiation lead to loss in mass @ Black holes?

In summary, according to the theory of black hole radiation, black holes emit a thermal spectrum of radiation and lose mass due to the E=mc2 equation. This is because at the quantum level, particles can pop out of the vacuum and when they recombine near the edge of an event horizon, they cannot even out the total energy. This results in the particle that falls into the black hole having a negative energy, reducing the total mass of the black hole. The "c" in the equation represents the speed of light and does not change.
  • #1
Astro.padma
80
0
According to theory of black hole radiation, black holes are expected to emit a thermal spectrum of radiation, and thereby loss mass, owing to the E=mc2 equation. Well, everything was clear to me till I got to the last point. why should there be loss only in mass?? couldn't the mass be same and velocity change, in order to satisfy the above equation?? Let me know if am going anywhere wrong and what does the "c" represent to in this case? I mean...velocity of what??
 
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  • #2
c is the speed of light - it doesn't change.
 
  • #3
From the little I understand, the following is a drastic oversimplification, and is somewhat untrue, but it is a good way to visualize the process.

As you might have heard, at the quantum level, you can have particles pop out of the vacuum (a particle-anti particle pair), and then quickly combine and dissipate. This does not violate the Law of the conservation of Energy because of how fast that process happened, and in the end when they disappeared the total energy was the same as before (also an oversimplification, but take my word). Another thing you need to know is that anti-particles and particles both have positive mass and energy.

Now imagine one of these particle - anti-particle pairs appeared right on the edge of an event horizon in a black hole, now they broke free, but when they tried to recombine one of the particles was in the event horizon, and one was not. Because of this, they could not recombine and even out the total energy. But because physics says that can't happen, the way you explain the increase of total energy (represented by the particle which didn't fall into the black hole), is that the particle that did fall in had a negative energy, and when that negative energy entered the black hole it reduced the total mass of the black hole.
 
  • #4
mathman said:
c is the speed of light - it doesn't change.

LOL am soo sorry for the question...I was into some thing...m really sorry...such a stupid question ! Don't know what made me think its SOME velocity at that time thankz anyways :)
 
  • #5
Vorde said:
From the little I understand, the following is a drastic oversimplification, and is somewhat untrue, but it is a good way to visualize the process.

As you might have heard, at the quantum level, you can have particles pop out of the vacuum (a particle-anti particle pair), and then quickly combine and dissipate. This does not violate the Law of the conservation of Energy because of how fast that process happened, and in the end when they disappeared the total energy was the same as before (also an oversimplification, but take my word). Another thing you need to know is that anti-particles and particles both have positive mass and energy.

Now imagine one of these particle - anti-particle pairs appeared right on the edge of an event horizon in a black hole, now they broke free, but when they tried to recombine one of the particles was in the event horizon, and one was not. Because of this, they could not recombine and even out the total energy. But because physics says that can't happen, the way you explain the increase of total energy (represented by the particle which didn't fall into the black hole), is that the particle that did fall in had a negative energy, and when that negative energy entered the black hole it reduced the total mass of the black hole.

This is not what my doubt was ! but the interesting thing is you have provided an even better point...never heard this before...thx for that :)
 
  • #6
No problem, I read the title of the topic and assumed what you were asking without reading the body in enough detail, whoops :)
 

1. Why do black holes lose mass through radiation?

Radiation from black holes, known as Hawking radiation, is a result of the quantum effects near the event horizon. As particles and antiparticles are created and destroyed constantly, some of them may fall into the black hole while others escape as radiation. This process causes the black hole to lose mass over time.

2. How does radiation affect the size of a black hole?

The loss of mass through radiation causes the black hole to shrink in size. As more and more particles escape, the black hole's event horizon, which is the point of no return, moves closer to the singularity at the center, making the black hole smaller.

3. Can black holes eventually disappear due to radiation?

Yes, theoretically, a black hole can eventually disappear through the process of Hawking radiation. However, this would only happen for very small black holes, as larger black holes emit less radiation and therefore take much longer to evaporate.

4. Does the radiation emitted by black holes have any properties?

Black hole radiation is thermal, meaning it has a temperature and can be described by the laws of thermodynamics. It also carries information about the black hole's properties, such as its mass and spin.

5. How does radiation from black holes relate to the information paradox?

The information paradox is a puzzle in physics that questions whether information about particles that fall into a black hole is lost forever. Hawking radiation suggests that the information may be carried out of the black hole in the form of radiation, but this is still a topic of ongoing research and debate.

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