On the origin of analogue Hawking radiation

Hawking radiation is usually defined as radiation expected to be emitted by the event horizon of black holes. This radiation originates from the interaction of the quantum field on the classical background of the curved spacetime around the black hole. This effect is often considered a reliable prediction although it has not been detected and it relies on some dubious assumptions. However, it is possible to view this effect in a more general way. What is a black hole? What are the necessary ingredients to create Hawking radiation? What if instead of gravity we use a different interaction to create a curvature? What type of horizon is necessary? What is the role of negative frequencies in the phenomenon? All these questions are answered by a relatively new and small field of study known as analogue gravity, where effects usually related to gravity are studied in other systems. The most successful ones so far are water tanks, Bose-Einstein condensate, and light pulses in dielectrics. In this talk, we will discuss these topics to lead to a broader understanding of their details, we will present in depth the optical analogues, and we will discuss recent theoretical and numerical results of our research group, as well as some experimental ones in collaboration with laboratories from Mexico and Israel.

Note exceptional day and location: Sunday at Reznick.

Dr. Bermudez is a candidate for a position in the department.