VOLUME 69, NUMBER 13 PH YSICAL REVIEW LETTERS 28 SEPTEMBER 1992

Black Hole in Three-Dimensional Spacetime

'
Maximo Banados, ' ' Claudio Teitelboim, ' ' ' ' and george Zanellit'l t'l
'
Centro de Fstudios Cientt'ftcos de Santiago, Casilla 16443, Santiago 9, Chile
and Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de Chile, Casilla 653, Santiago, Chile
institute for Advanced Study, Olden Lane, Princeton, New Jersey 08540
(Received 29 April 1992)
The standard Einstein-Maxwell equations in 2+1 spacetime dimensions, with a negative cosmological
—
constant, admit a black hole solution. The 2+1 black hole characterized by mass, angular momentum,
and charge, defined by Aux integrals at infinity —
is quite similar to its 3+1 counterpart. Anti-de Sitter
space appears as a negative energy state separated by a mass gap from the continuous black hole spec-
trum. Evaluation of the partition function yields that the entropy is equal to twice the perimeter length
of the horizon.

PACS numbers: 04. 20.9b, 97.60.Lf

The fascinating properties of the black hole, classical Of these, r+ is the black hole horizon. In order for the
and —
especially —
quantum, have long made it desirable horizon to exist one must have
to have available a lower-dimensional analog which could
exhibit the key features without the unnecessary compli- m&0, llj~~m/. (3)
cations. It is the purpose of this Letter to report that the In the extreme case ~J ( =M/, both roots of N =0 coin-
sought-for analog does exist in standard 2+1 Einstein- cide.
Maxwell theory with a negative cosmological constant. Note that the radius of curvature I=(—A) 'I pro-
For simplicity we will first ignore the coupling to the vides the length scale necessary in order to have a horizon
Maxwell field. The generalization to nonzero electric in a theory in which the mass is dimensionless. If one lets
charge will be indicated afterwards. I grow very large the black hole exterior is pushed away
The action is to infinity and one is left just with the inside.
The vacuum state, namely, what is to be regarded as
I 1

2z 4
4 —g[R+2/ ]d xdt+B, empty space, is obtained by making the black hole disap-
pear, that is, by letting the horizon size go to zero. This
where B is a surface term and the radius / is related to amounts to letting M 0, which requires J
0 on ac-
the cosmological constant by —A=l . The equations count of (3). One thus obtains the line element
of motion derived from (1) are solved by the black hole
field ds = —(r/I) dt +(r/I) dr +r dtlt

ds = Ndt +N —dr +r (N~dt+dP) (2) As M grows negative one encounters the solutions stud-
where the squared lapse N (r) and the angular shift ied previously in Refs. [2, 3]. The conical singularity that
N~(r) are given by they possess is naked, just as the curvature singularity of
a negative mass black hole in 3+1 dimensions. Thus,
N'(r)- IV+
r2
(
+—
J2
N~(r) =- J
4r2
,
2r
they must, in the present context, be excluded from the
physical spectrum. There is, however, an important ex-
with —ee (
In this Letter we
t & ee, 0& r( 0~ ~
ee, and p 2tr.
will focus our attention mainly on the
ceptional case. When one reaches M —1 and =
singularity disappears. There is no horizon, but there is
J=o
the

physical properties of the solution. The geometric struc- no singularity to hide, either. The configuration
ture will be briefly touched upon at the end and its de-
ds = —[1+(r/I) ]dt +[1+(r/I) ] 'dr +r dp
tailed study will be provided in a forthcoming publication
[1]. (anti-de Sitter space) is again permissible.
The two constants of integration M and appearing in J Therefore, one sees that anti-de Sitter space emerges
(2) are the conserved charges associated with asymptotic "
as a "bound state, separated from the continuous black
invariance under time displacements (mass) and rotation- hole spectrum by a mass gap of one unit. This state can-
al invariance (angular momentum), respectively. These not be deformed continuously into the vacuum (4), be-
charges are given by Aux integrals through a large circle cause the deformation would require going through a se-
at spacelike infinity. quence of naked singularities which are not included in
The lapse function N(r) vanishes for two values of r the configuration space.
given by Note that the zero point of energy has been set so that
2. i/2 i/2 the mass vanishes when the horizon size goes to zero.
=I M 1+ 1— J This is quite natural. It is what is done in 3+1 dimen-
2 MI sions. In the past, the zero of energy has been adjusted so

1992 The American Physical Society 1849

VOLUME 69, NUMBER 13 PH YSICAL REVIEW
that, instead, anti-de Sitter space has zero mass. Quite
apart from this difference, the key point is that the black
hole spectrum lies above the limiting case M=0.
The 2+1 black hole has thermodynamical properties
similar to those found in 3+1 dimensions [4]. In the
steepest-descent approximation, the free energy F divided
by the temperature is given by the value of the Euclidean
action evaluated on the Euclidean continuation [5] of the
black hole field (2). The surface terms appearing in the
action are here crucial. They must be constructed so that
the action truly has an extremum on the class of fields
considered [6]. In the variation one must allow changes
in the fields contributing to the surface integrals giving M
and J, but must hold fixed their momenta (appropriate
variational derivatives of the action on the boundaries),
which become the "thermodynamical conjugates" [7].
These conjugates are the period P of the Euclidean Kil-
ling time (inverse temperature T ') and the rotational
chemical potential — which turns out to be the negative of
the angular shift N~ evaluated on the horizon ("angular
velocity" ).
To determine the surface terms, we found it best, both
for conceptual and practical reasons, not to work with the
covariant form of the action (1), but to start instead with
its Hamiltonian version
I' „[z'Jgij —N'P dt+8'.
N"H;]d x—
The surface term 8' differs from 8 in (1) (the volume in-
tegrals of I and I' differ by a surface term).
Working with the Hamiltonian action has the following
advantages: (i) Since the metric is time independent, the
value of the volume piece of the Hamiltonian action is
equal to zero when the constraints hold. Thus, the sur-
face terms are everything, even in the presence of the
cosmological constant. (ii) One knows right away the
surface term that must be added at infinity without need
to regularize. For the Euclidean action, it is simply the
period P of Killing time multiplied by the mass (by
definition of the mass).
After infinity has been dealt with, there remains only to
make sure that the variational derivative of the action
should vanish on the horizon. This makes it necessary to
include in Ba« two further "surface terms" at r r+.
They turn out to be equal to minus two times the proper
perimeter length of the horizon (to cancel the variation of
J
the Hamiltonian constraint) and PN~(r+) (to cancel the
variation of the momentum constraint).
One thus gets for the Euclidean action
I E« /jM —4zr i + PN~(r+ )J .
But, IF«F/T, where the free energy is F=M
—g p;C; and the p's are the chemical potentials thermo-
TS—
dynamically conjugate to the conserved charges C;.
Therefore, Eq. (5) confirms that P and
inverse temperature
N~(r+) are
and the chemical potential corre-
the-
1850
LETTERS 28 SEPTEMBER 1992
sponding to J, respectively. It also shows that the entropy
is equal to twice the perimeter length of the horizon,
S =2L =4'+ . (6)
From (6), one may evaluate the temperature of the
black hole,
BS p
2
p
2
8M 2'' i
This expression coincides with the periodicity in Euclide-
an Killing time needed to make the Euclidean black hole
geometry regular at the horizon. One may also verify
that N~(r+ ) T(8S/8 J) sr.
Note that as the horizon disappears, the temperature
goes to zero in contrast with the 3+1 case. On the other
hand, the extreme rotating hole (J MI) has zero tem-
perature and nonzero entropy, just as the 3+1 case.
Now, we briefly discuss how the electromagnetic field
is brought in. One includes the following additional con-
tributions in the action: (i) The electromagnetic energy
and momentum densities are added to // and /f;,
respectively. (ii) A term x'A; is added to z'g;i. (iii)
The Gauss law constraint is incorporated by adding
f
+ d2xdtAorr'; to the volume piece of the action. (iv)
This makes it mandatory to include in Bq„, a new surface
integral equal to Ao(r+)Q. Here Q is the electric charge
given by a flux integral at infinity, and equal to the con-
stant value throughout space of the radial component z".
The only nonvanishing component of the electromag-
netic vector potential may be taken to be
Ao(r) —Q In(r/ro) .
The only modification of the metric (2) is that the
lapse function in (3) must be replaced by
N =N(g-0)+ 2 QAp(r) .
The free energy acquires an extra term — Ao(r+)Q and
the entropy is again equal to twice the proper perimeter
length of the black hole. The horizon exists for any value
of Q provided the bound (3) on is obeyed [8]. J
Last, we turn to some comments on the geometry of
the black hole. For simplicity, these comments are re-
stricted to Q 0 (no Maxwell field). In that case, one is
dealing with a spacetime of constant negative curvature
(the Riemann tensor is a constant multiple of an antisym-
metrized product of metric tensors). It is well known [9]
that such a spacetime must arise from identifications of
points in anti-de Sitter space through a discrete subgroup
of its symmetry group O(2, 2). In this case, the discrete
subgroup is generated by one element, the exponential of
a particular Killing vector. In terms of the embedding
+ + = —I
of anti-de Sitter space in flat four-dimensional space that
YOLUME 69, NUMBER 13 PH YS I CA L R EY I E%' LETTERS 28 SEPTEMBER 1992

Killing vector is given by though correct in the case at hand, making imaginary a
particular coordinate in a generally covariant theory is
r+ t] t) disturbing. A more satisfactory way to define the Eu-
x +u y +i) clidean continuation is the following. One solves the Eu-
l u x l tlv t)y
clidean field equations but introduces complex constants
Throughout anti-de Sitter space this vector can be of integration in the solutions, thus generating complex
spacelike, null, or timelike. The whole of the black hole solutions to real equations. In the present example, one
geometry is the region where (
is spacelike. This region sets Jq„= — i J, and, when there is electric charge,
Its boundaries are the surfaces g =0 QEgg
—iQ Her. e and Q are the physical (Minkowski-
J
is incomplete.
which correspond to r =0 in the metric (2). One cannot an signature) values of the angular momentum and elec-
tric charge. This point of view makes it clear that the
continue past these boundaries because (
becomes time-
procedure is coordinate invariant.
like and the identification would produce closed timelike
[6) T. Regge and C. Teitelboim, Ann. Phys. (N. Y.) SS, 286
lines. (1974).
The rich structure of the 2+1 black hole is remarkable [7] That canonical conjugates in the sense of classical
given the simple nature of gravitation in three spacetime mechanics become thermodynamical conjugates has been
dimensions [10]. One may hope that its study will pro- noticed by J. D. Brown, G. L. Comer, E. A. Martinez, J.
vide further understanding of the black hole, especially at Melmed, B. F. Whiting, and J. W. York, Classical Quan-
the quantum level. tum Gravity 7, 1433 (1990). That the entropy may be
Discussions with David Brown, Mare Henneaux, written as a surface term on the horizon has been ob-
Steven Carlip, Frank Wilczek, Edward Witten, and served previously by J. D. Brown, E. A. Martinez, and J.
James York are gratefully acknowledged. M. B. holds a W. York, Phys. Rev. Lett. 66, 2281 (1991). Already S.
Hawking [in General Relativity, An Einstein Centenary
Fundacion Andes Fellowship and C.T. holds a Gug-
Survey, edited by S. Hawking and W. Israel (Cambridge
genheim Fellowship. This work was supported in part by Univ. Press, Cambridge, 1979), pp. 779, 7801 had pointed
Grants No. 0862/91 and No. 0867/91 of FONDECYT out that the diA'erence between the action and the mass
(Chile), by a European Communities research contract, multiplied by the time was due to a contribution at the
and by institutional support provided by SAREC horizon. However, his somewhat ad hoc regularization
(Sweden) and Empresas Copec (Chile) to the Centro de procedure— —
involving a subtraction at infinity obscured
Estudios Cientificos de Santiago. the fact that the entropy itself is a surface term at the
horizon. Expressing the entropy as a surface integral on
the horizon plays a key role in an ongoing program by F.
' Electronic address: cecsnetuchcecvm. bitnet. Wilczek (Princeton lecture notes, unpublished) to eluci-
[1] M. Bahados, M. Henneaux, C. Teitelboim, and J. Zanelli date the physical origin of the black hole entropy. We
(to be published). thank him for inspiring discussions on black hole physics.
[2] S. Deser, R. Jackiw, and G. 't Hooft, Ann. Phys. (N. Y.) [8] The constant ro is an arbitrary reference point for the en-
152, 220 (1984). ergy, which cannot be taken to be at infinity as in the 3+1
[3] J. D. Brown, Ph. D. thesis, University of Texas at Austin, case. If ro is replaced by ro, M is replaced by M
1985; published as a book, Lour Dimensional Gravity + —,' Q2ln(ro/ro). However, the variation of the free ener-
(World Scientific, Singapore, 1988). gy keeping the temperature and the chemical potentials
[4] G. Gibbons and S. Hawking, Phys. Rev. D 15, 2752 fixed is independent of ro, and so are T, S, and N~(r~).
(1977). [9] We thank E. Witten for pointing this out to us.
[5] The Euclidean continuation may be obtained by setting [10] E. Witten, Nucl. Phys. B311, 46 (1988); A. Hosoya and
t —i r in (2). This makes the metric complex when K. Nakao, Classical Quantum Gravity 7, 163 (1990); S.
J~O. The Euclidean action is given by il= —lz„,. Al- Carlip, Phys. Rev. D 42, 2647 (1990).