We study a free scalar field $phi$ in a fixed curved background spacetime subject to a higher derivative field equation of the form $F(Box)phi =0$, where $F$ is a polynomial of the form $F(Box)= prod_i (Box-m_i^2)$ and all masses $m_i$ are distinct a
nd real. Using an auxiliary field method to simplify the calculations, we obtain expressions for the Belinfante-Rosenfeld symmetric energy-momentum tensor and compare it with the canonical energy-momentum tensor when the background is Minkowski spacetime. We also obtain the conserved symplectic current necessary for quantisation and briefly discuss the issue of negative energy versus negative norm and its relation to Reflection Positivity in Euclidean treatments. We study, without assuming spherical symmetry, the possible existence of finite energy static solutions of the scalar equations, in static or stationary background geometries. Subject to various assumptions on the potential, we establish non-existence results including a no-scalar-hair theorem for static black holes. We consider Pais-Uhlenbeck field theories in a cosmological de Sitter background, and show how the Hubble friction may eliminate what would otherwise be unstable behaviour when interactions are included.
The radiation emitted by horizonless exotic compact objects (ECOs), such as wormholes, 2-2-holes, fuzzballs, gravastars, boson stars, collapsed polymers, superspinars etc., is expected to be strongly suppressed when compared to the radiation of black
holes. If large primordial curvature fluctuations collapse into such objects instead of black holes, they do not evaporate or evaporate much slower than black holes and could thus constitute all of the dark matter with masses below $M < 10^{-16}M_odot.$ We reevaluate the relevant experimental constraints for light ECOs in this mass range and show that very large new parameter space down to ECO masses $Msim 10,{rm TeV}$ opens up for light primordial dark matter. A new dedicated experimental program is needed to test this mass range of primordial dark matter.
An exact spherically symmetric black hole solution of a recently proposed noncommutative gravity theory based on star products and twists is constructed. This is the first nontrivial exact solution of that theory. The resulting noncommutative black h
ole quite naturally exhibits holographic behavior; outside the horizon it has a fuzzy shell-like structure, inside the horizon it has a noncommutative de Sitter geometry. The star product and twist contain Killing vectors and act non-trivially on tensors except the metric, which is central in the algebra. The method used can be applied whenever there are enough spacetime symmetries. This includes noncommutati
We discuss the statistical-mechanical entropy of black hole calculated according to t Hooft. It is argued that in presence of horizon the statistical mechanics of quantum fields depends on their UV behavior. The ``brick wall model was shown to provid
e a correct description when the ``brick wall parameter is less than any UV cut-off.
We discuss the connection between different entropies introduced for black hole. It is demonstrated on the two-dimensional example that the (quantum) thermodynamical entropy of a hole coincides (including UV-finite terms) with its statistical-mechani
cal entropy calculated according to t Hooft and regularized by Pauli-Villars.
