Or physicist Stephen Hawking
The mystery about black holes that has intrigued science for almost 50 years may have come to an end.
Em 1976, Stephen Hawking proposed that black holes are not completely dark. Instead, according to the physicist, these bodies emit radiation – known as Hawking radiation – which, over time, can make them disappear.
The problem arises when Hawking theorizes that this radiation does not contain information on the absorbed matter. The hypothesis, called the “information paradox”, contradicts the fundamental laws of Physics, which determine that information cannot be destroyed.
Now, a team of researchers from the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) proposes a solution based on the theory of quantum nonlocality. Basically, the new theory suggests that quantum connections between the inside and outside of the black hole could allow the information was preserved.
The approach suggests that black holes can leak information in very subtle ways, leaving detectable clues in gravitational waves.
The study proposes that quantum connections produce small perturbations in the spacetime surrounding black holes, which are reflected as specific variations in the gravitational wave signals detectable when two black holes merge.
Currently, there are no detectors with sufficient sensitivity to identify these signals, but in the future it may be possible to confirm this theory.
The Caltech team developed models that describe how these disturbances would affect gravitational waves: according to the scientists, the patterns would not be random, but rather correlated with the information contained in the black hole.
This interconnection would allow, even when a black hole completely evaporates, your information would not be lost.
The next challenge for the scientific community will be to refine these models to more accurately predict the effects of quantum non-locality in real signals. If the theory is confirmed, not only would a fundamental problem in astrophysics be solved, but it would also be a major step towards the integration of general relativity and quantum mechanics.
The is available for consultation on the arXiv portal.
