Phone: (773) 702-7765
Location: PRC 443
Email: rmwamidway.uchicago.edu
WWW: Web Site

My research has been concerned with a broad range of topics in classical general relativity, cosmology, and quantum phenomena related to gravity. A great deal of my research has focused on the theory of black holes---regions of spacetime where gravity is so strong that nothing can escape---and the remarkable (mathematical and physical) analogy between the laws of black hole physics and the ordinary laws of thermodynamics. In particular, the fact that black holes radiate as perfect black bodies as a consequence of quantum particle creation effects has led to many deep insights into the nature of quantum gravity. My interests also span mathematical investigations of classical general relativity, and applications of general relativity to cosmology and astrophysics, such as gravitational lensing phenomena and gravitational radiation reaction effects.

In the past few years, my main research efforts have concerned the formulation of quantum field theory in the presence of gravity, i.e., quantum field theory in curved spacetime. In this approach, gravity is treated classically, but all other fields are treated in accord with the principles of quantum field theory. Some major issues of principle arise in the formulation of this theory on account of the lack of Poincare symmetry and the absence of a preferred vacuum state, but it has recently been shown that the theory can be formulated in a fully satisfactory manner. It is my hope that this will provide important clues to the formulation of a fully quantum theory of gravity itself.

2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 | 2014 | 2013 | 2012 | 2011 | 2010 | 2009 | 2008 | 2007 | 2006


Latest Journal Publications

1. "Black hole shadows, photon rings, and lensing rings", Physical Review D, Volume 100, Issue 2, id.024018 (Jul 2019)
2. "Canonical energy and Hertz potentials for perturbations of Schwarzschild spacetime", Classical and Quantum Gravity, Volume 35, Issue 23, article id. 235004 (2018) (Dec 2018)
3. "Quantum superposition of massive objects and the quantization of gravity", Physical Review D, Volume 98, Issue 12, id.126009 (Dec 2018)
4. "Jacob Bekenstein and the Development of Black Hole Thermodynamics", arXiv:1805.02302 (May 2018)
5. "Stability of stationary-axisymmetric black holes in vacuum general relativity to axisymmetric electromagnetic perturbations", Classical and Quantum Gravity, Volume 35, Issue 1, article id. 015009 (2018) (Jan 2018)
6. "Kerr-Newman black holes cannot be over-charged or over-spun", International Journal of Modern Physics D, Volume 27, Issue 11, id. 1843003 (n/a 2018)
7. "Gedanken experiments to destroy a black hole. II. Kerr-Newman black holes cannot be overcharged or overspun", Physical Review D, Volume 96, Issue 10, id.104014 (Nov 2017)
8. "Information loss", Reports on Progress in Physics, Volume 80, Issue 9, article id. 092002 (2017) (Sep 2017)
9. "BMS supertranslations and memory in four and higher dimensions", Classical and Quantum Gravity, Volume 34, Issue 15, article id. 155005 (2017) (Aug 2017)
10. "The memory effect for particle scattering in even spacetime dimensions", Classical and Quantum Gravity, Volume 34, Issue 14, article id. 145015 (2017) (Jul 2017)
11. "GW170104: Observation of a 50-Solar-Mass Binary Black Hole Coalescence at Redshift 0.2", Physical Review Letters, Volume 118, Issue 22, id.221101 (Jun 2017)
12. "Cosmological memory effect", Physical Review D, Volume 94, Issue 4, id.044009 (Aug 2016)
13. "Superradiant instabilities of asymptotically anti-de Sitter black holes", Classical and Quantum Gravity, Volume 33, Issue 12, article id. 125022 (2016) (Jun 2016)
14. "Black Hole Instabilities and Exponential Growth", Communications in Mathematical Physics, Volume 340, Issue 1, pp.253-290 (Nov 2015)
15. "Comments on Backreaction", arXiv:1506.06452 (Jun 2015)
16. "Reflection symmetry in higher dimensional black hole spacetimes", Classical and Quantum Gravity, Volume 32, Issue 10, article id. 105005 (2015) (May 2015)
17. "Quantum fields in curved spacetime", Physics Reports, Volume 574, p. 1-35 (Apr 2015)
18. "How well is our Universe described by an FLRW model?", Classical and Quantum Gravity, Volume 31, Issue 23, article id. 234003 (2014) (Dec 2014)
19. "Dynamic and thermodynamic stability of relativistic, perfect fluid stars", Classical and Quantum Gravity, Volume 31, Issue 3, article id. 035023 (2014) (Feb 2014)
20. "Turning point instabilities for relativistic stars and black holes", Classical and Quantum Gravity, Volume 31, Issue 3, article id. 035024 (2014) (Feb 2014)

Latest Conference Proceedings

1. "Black Holes, Thermodynamics, and Quantum Theory", APS April Meeting 2017, abstract id. H14.001 (Jan 2017)
2. "Field Discontinuities and the Memory Effect", APS April Meeting 2017, abstract id. R6.006 (Jan 2017)
3. "Canonical energy and linear stability of Schwarzschild", APS April Meeting 2017, abstract id. R6.003 (Jan 2017)
4. "Charged Matter Tests of Cosmic Censorship for Extremal and Nearly-Extremal Black Holes", APS April Meeting 2017, abstract id. E6.009 (Jan 2017)
5. "Gravitational wave memory in an expanding universe", APS April Meeting 2016, abstract id. C15.005 (Mar 2016)
6. "Examination of a simple case of gravitational wave memory", APS April Meeting 2015, abstract id. H13.009 (Apr 2015)
7. "Growth rate for blackhole instabilities", APS April Meeting 2015, abstract id. H13.004 (Apr 2015)
8. "Reflection Symmetry in Higher Dimensional Black Hole Spacetimes", APS April Meeting 2015, abstract id. H13.003 (Apr 2015)
9. "Retarded Fields of Null Particles and the Memory Effect", APS April Meeting 2014, abstract #C16.005 (Mar 2014)
10. "Turning Point Instabilities for Relativistic Stars and Black Holes", APS April Meeting 2014, abstract #C16.004 (Mar 2014)