All JournalsPhysics Magazine

Export citation

Export citation

Choose format for download:

Download Citation
  • Access by Xinjiang University

On the Uniqueness of Fock's Harmonic Coordinate Systems in the Presence of Static, Spherically Symmetric Sources

F. J. Belinfante and J. C. Garrison*

  • Department of Physics, Purdue University, Lafayette, Indiana

  • *Now at Lawrence Radiation Laboratory, University of California, Livermore, California.

Phys. Rev. 125, 1124 – Published 1 February, 1962

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRev.125.1124

Abstract

Fock has claimed that his "harmonic" coordinate systems in curved space flattening out toward spatial infinity are uniquely determined but for an arbitrary inhomogeneous Lorentz transformation. If this is so, introduction of Fock's harmonic coordinate conditions would provide a natural way of introducing a Lorentz subgroup of the general coordinate transformation group of Einstein's gravitational theory, and of defining a Minkowski metric besides the curved-space metric. This would open the way to close relations between Einstein's gravitational theory on the one hand, and Lorentz-covariant quantum field theory on the other hand. A general proof of the correctness of Fock's claim, for universes satisfying his boundary conditions, has never been given rigorously. Here we extend an earlier proof of this uniqueness for the Schwarzschild field around a single gravitational singularity, to the case of the static and spherically symmetric field generated in some coordinate system by an extended static and spherical distribution of energy and of stresses. The uniqueness (but for the zero point of time and for a spatial rotation) of the harmonic coordinate system, in which this field is spherical and at rest around the spatial origin, is here guaranteed by the condition that there must be a one-to-one correspondence between the points x, y, z, t of the harmonic coordinate system and the points in physical space.

References (19)

  1. V. Fock, The Theory of Space Time and Gravitation (Pergamon Press, New York, 1959), pp. 342-352
  2. J. C. Garrison, Ph.D. thesis, Purdue University, 1961 (unpublished), available as part of a National Science Foundation report on "The Interaction Picture in Gravitational Theory and Some Related Topics" (Purdue University, September 1961)
  3. [1]
  4. Omitted endnote

  5. Omitted endnote

  6. Omitted endnote

  7. V. Fock, [1], p. 347
  8. Omitted endnote

  9. P. G. Bergmann, Phys. Rev. 124, 274 (1961)
  10. Omitted endnote

  11. Omitted endnote

  12. Omitted endnote

  13. F. J. Belinfante, Phys. Rev. 98, 793 (1955)
  14. [13]
  15. [13]
  16. Omitted endnote

  17. H. Weyl, Space-Time-Matter (Dover Publications, New York, 1950), bottom of pp. 252 and 256 together with top of p. 261 W. Pauli, Theory of Relativity (Pergamon Press, New York, 1958), p. 171
  18. [13]
  19. Omitted endnote

Outline

Information

Sign In to Your Journals Account

Filter

Filter

Article Lookup

Enter a citation