Published April 25, 2013 | Version v1
Journal article

Entropy of universe as entanglement entropy

Creators

Description

We note that the observable part of universe at a certain time tP is necessarily limited, when there is a beginning of universe. We argue that an appropriate spacetime region associated with an observer from tI to tP is the causal diamond which is the overlap of the past/future of the observer at tP/tI respectively. We also note that the overlap surface ∂D of the future and the past lightcones bisects the spatial section including ∂D into two regions D and D¯ where D is the region inside the causal diamond and D¯ the remaining part of the spatial section. We propose here that the entropy of universe associated with a causal diamond is given by an entanglement entropy where one is tracing over the Hilbert space associated with the region D¯ which is not accessible by the observer. We test our proposal for various examples of cosmological spacetimes, including flat or open FRW universes, by showing that the entropy as the area of ∂D divided by 4G is a non-decreasing function of time tP as dictated by the generalized second law of thermodynamics. The closed, recollapsing universe corresponds to a finite system and there is no reason to expect the validity of the generalized second law for such a finite system

Availability note (English)

Available from http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.physletb.2013.03.023

Additional details

Identifiers

DOI
10.1016/j.physletb.2013.03.023;
arXiv
arXiv:1211.3592v3;
PII
S0370-2693(13)00248-7;

Publishing Information

Journal Title
Physics Letters. Section B
Journal Volume
721
Journal Issue
4-5
Journal Page Range
p. 323-328
ISSN
0370-2693
CODEN
PYLBAJ

INIS

Country of Publication
Netherlands
Country of Input or Organization
International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)
INIS RN
45062606
Subject category
S71: CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSICS; S79: ASTROPHYSICS, COSMOLOGY AND ASTRONOMY;
Descriptors DEI
CAUSALITY; ENTROPY; HILBERT SPACE; LIGHT CONE; QUANTUM ENTANGLEMENT; SURFACES; THERMODYNAMICS; TIME DEPENDENCE; UNIVERSE
Descriptors DEC
BANACH SPACE; MATHEMATICAL SPACE; PHYSICAL PROPERTIES; SPACE; SPACE-TIME; THERMODYNAMIC PROPERTIES

Optional Information

Copyright
Copyright (c) 2013 Elsevier Science B.V., Amsterdam, The Netherlands, All rights reserved.