Why Does the Gödel Universe Rotate?

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SUMMARY

The discussion centers on the Gödel Metric in spherical coordinates, specifically its implications for a rotating universe as described by Einstein's Equations. The metric is defined as ds^2=4a^2[-dt^2+dr^2+dz^2-(\sinh^{4}(r)-\sinh^{2}(r))d\phi^2+2\sqrt{2}\sinh^{2}(r)dt d\phi], with parameters a and Λ defined as a=1/(2√(2πρ)) and Λ=-1/(2a^2). The main inquiry involves determining the rate of precession of a gyroscope for an observer stationary in Gödel coordinates, leading to the equations of motion for the gyroscope's spin. The expected result for the precession rate is 2√(πρ).

PREREQUISITES
  • Understanding of Einstein's Equations and general relativity concepts.
  • Familiarity with the Gödel Metric and its implications for cosmology.
  • Knowledge of gyroscopic motion and precession in curved spacetime.
  • Ability to solve ordinary differential equations (ODEs) related to spin dynamics.
NEXT STEPS
  • Investigate the properties of the Gödel Metric and its implications for rotating universes.
  • Study the mathematical formulation of gyroscopic precession in general relativity.
  • Learn about the transformation of results to locally flat frames in curved spacetime.
  • Explore the relationship between spin and angular momentum in relativistic contexts.
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Students and researchers in theoretical physics, particularly those focusing on general relativity, cosmology, and the dynamics of rotating systems in curved spacetime.

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Homework Statement


Consider the Godel Metric in spherical coordinates as on page 6 here;
ds^2=4a^2\left[-dt^2+dr^2+dz^2-(\sinh^{4}(r)-\sinh^{2}(r))d\phi^2+2\sqrt{2}\sinh^{2}(r)dt d\phi)\right]

This is a solution to Einstein's Equations if we have ##a=\frac{1}{2\sqrt{2\pi\rho}}## and ##\Lambda =-\frac{1}{2a^2}##, where ##\Lambda## is the cosmological constant and ##\rho## is the density of the uniform dust with which we fill the universe.

It is often stated that this represents a rotating universe, but to me that is not immediately obvious, and so I want to prove it. To do so I'm considering an observer stationary with respect to the Godel coordinates at some point ##(r,\phi,z)## and equipped with a gyroscope. If the universe is rotating, the gyroscope should obviously precess. I want to find the rate of precession.

Homework Equations


Einstein's Equations and those mentioned throughout the post.

The Attempt at a Solution



The observer is stationary, so we have ##-1=\vec{u}\cdot\vec{u}=g_{\alpha\beta}u^{\alpha}u^{\beta}=g_{tt}(u^{t})^{2}=-4a^{2}(u^{t})^{2}##, so ##u^{t}=\frac{1}{\sqrt{2}a}## and so ##\vec{u}=(\frac{1}{\sqrt{2}a},0,0,0)##.
##a## is constant so clearly ##\vec{a}=0##, so the gyroscope is in free fall. This means its spin, ##\tilde{S}## undergoes parallel transport; ##\nabla_{\vec{u}}\tilde{S}=0##. Spin is a 1-form so we have:
\frac{S_{\alpha}}{dt}=\Gamma^{\gamma}_{\alpha\beta}S_{\gamma}u^{\beta}u
This means that ##s_{z}## and ##s_{t}## are constant, and as we must have ##\tilde{S}\cdot\vec{u}=0##, ##s_{t}=0##.
The resulting ODES are;
\frac{dS_{r}}{dt}=\frac{\sqrt{2}}{a\sinh(2r)}S_{\phi}
\frac{dS_{\phi}}{dt}=-\frac{1}{2\sqrt{2}a}\sinh(2r)S_{r}

They have general solution:
S_{r}(t)=-2i(A\exp({\frac{it}{a\sqrt{2}}})-B\exp({-\frac{it}{a\sqrt{2}}}))
S_{\phi}(t)=\sinh(2r)(A\exp({\frac{it}{a\sqrt{2}}})+B\exp({-\frac{it}{a\sqrt{2}}}))

I'm not sure how to go from here to the angular velocity/momentum associated with the spin.
The spin 1-form is given component wise by ##s_{\alpha}=\frac{1}{2}\epsilon_{\alpha\beta\gamma\delta}J^{\beta\gamma}u^{\delta}##, which let's us use the above result to find the components of ##J^{\alpha\beta}##, and I believe I should find something along the lines of ##\frac{dS}{dt}=\Omega\times S## for some angular velocity ##\Omega##, but classical mechanics never was my strong suit so I'm not sure of the specifics. Honestly the whole concept of spin and precession in GR is doing my head in.
I think the result should be ##2\sqrt{\pi\rho}##, which I have seen while researching online, but yeah, I have no idea how to prove it.
I guess the crux of my question is how do we relate ##S_{\alpha}## to the precession velocity of the gyroscope of which it is the spin?
Any pointers, general or specific would really help, thanks.​
 
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I just noticed a few typos in the above. Throughout the t's should be ##\tau##'s, theyre the proper time of the observer. Also ##u^{t}=\frac{1}{2a}## not ##\frac{1}{\sqrt{2}a}##. I already made one edit, and apparently I can't make more so I'll post this here.

Also, if I try to evaluate ##\Omega\times S## for an arbitrary angular velocity ##\Omega## and equate this to ##\frac{ds_{i}}{d\tau}##, where ##i\in\{1,2,3\}##, I get

(\frac{2}{a\sqrt{2}\sinh(2r)}S_{\phi}(\tau),\frac{-\sinh(2r)}{2\sqrt{2}a}S_{r}(\tau),0)=(-\Omega_{z}S_{\phi},\Omega_{z}S_{r},\Omega_{r}S_{\phi}-\Omega_{\phi}S_{r})

Which due to the ##\sinh(2r)## factor cannot be true for a general position.
I don't know where I'm going wrong. Maybe I've solved the equations of motion wrong somehow, maybe I'm misunderstanding precession, or maybe I need to transform the result to the locally flat frame of the observer (which I have no idea how to do), or something else entirely.
 
Last edited:

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