Black holes constrain varying constants

P. C. W. Davies (), Tamara M. Davis and Charles H. Lineweaver
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P. C. W. Davies: Australian Centre for Astrobiology, Macquarie University
Tamara M. Davis: University of New South Wales
Charles H. Lineweaver: University of New South Wales

Nature, 2002, vol. 418, issue 6898, 602-603

Abstract: Abstract There is evidence to suggest that the fine-structure constant, α — a measure of the strength of the electromagnetic interaction between photons and electrons — is slowly increasing over cosmological timescales1,2,3,4. As α = e2/ℏc (where e is the electronic charge, ℏ is Planck's constant and c is the speed of light), this would call into question which of these fundamental quantities are truly constant. Here we consider black-hole thermodynamics as a test of which constants might actually be variable, discounting those that could lead to a violation of the generalized second law of thermodynamics.

Date: 2002
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DOI: 10.1038/418602a

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