Solutions to Assignments 05

1. Tensor Analysis III: The Covariant Divergence

(a) First we compute Γµµλ with the definition :

1 µρ
Γµµλ = g (∂µ gρλ + ∂λ gµρ − ∂ρ gµλ )
2
1 ρ
= (∂ gρλ + gµρ ∂λ gµρ − ∂ µ gµλ )
2
1 µρ
= g ∂λ gµρ (1)
2
Then, we use the relation g−1 ∂λ g = gµν ∂λ gµν to find that :

1 µρ
Γµµλ = g ∂λ gµρ
2
1 −1
= g ∂λ g
2
= g−1/2 ∂λ g+1/2 (2)

where in the last equality we used the fact that : ∂λ g+1/2 = 21 g−1/2 ∂λ g.
(b) We can now compute the covariant divergence :

∇µ J µ = ∂µ J µ + Γµµρ J ρ
= ∂µ J µ + J ρ g−1/2 ∂ρ g+1/2
= g−1/2 ∂µ (g1/2 J µ ) (3)

and

∇µ F µν = ∂µ F µν + Γµµρ F ρν + Γνµρ F µρ
= ∂µ F µν + Γµµρ F ρν
= ∂µ F µν + F ρν g−1/2 ∂ρ g+1/2
= g−1/2 ∂µ (g1/2 F µν ) (4)

where the last term in the first equation vanishes because an antisymmetric
tensor (F µρ ) is contracted with a symmetric object (Γνµρ ). More precisely,
if we rewrite Γνµρ = 12 (Γνµρ + Γνρµ ) and F µρ = 21 (F µρ − F ρµ ), then Γνµρ F µρ
contains 4 terms and relabelling two of them by the exchange of the indices
µ ↔ ρ we see that everything vanishes.
(c) To calculate the Laplacian, we just need the metric,
 
1 0 0
ds2 = dr 2 + r 2 (dθ 2 + sin2 θdφ2 ) ⇔ (gαβ ) = 0 r 2 0  (5)
 

0 0 r 2 sin2 θ

1
 its inverse,  
1 0 0
(gαβ ) = 0 r −2 0 (6)
 

−2
0 0 r (sin θ)−2

and its determinant,

√
g = r 4 sin2 θ ⇒ g = r 2 sin θ (7)

Then one calculates

1
2Φ = ∂α (r 2
sin θgαβ ∂β Φ)
r 2 sin θ
1 (8)
∂r (r 2 sin θ∂r Φ) + ∂θ (sin θ∂θ Φ) + ∂φ ((sin θ)−1 ∂θ Φ)


=
r 2 sin θ
= r −2 ∂r (r 2 ∂r Φ) + r −2 (sin θ)−1 ∂θ (sin θ∂θ Φ) + (sin θ)−2 ∂φ2 Φ

This can now be rewritten in many ways, e.g. as

2 ∆ 2
2 = ∂r2 + ∂r + S2 (9)
r r
with
1
∂a (sin θgab ∂b )
∆S 2 = (10)
sin θ
(xa = (θ, φ)) the Laplace operator on the unit 2-sphere.

2. Orbit equation for general static spherically symmetric metrics

(a) First we extract the constants of motion from the Lagrangian :

1 ǫ 1 1 1 1
L = gµν ẋµ ẋν = = − A(r)ṫ2 + B(r)ṙ 2 + r 2 θ̇ 2 + r 2 sin(θ)2 φ̇2
2 2 2 2 2 2
∂L
⇒ − = E = A(r)ṫ (11)
∂ ṫ
∂L
⇒ = L = r 2 sin(θ)2 φ̇ (12)
∂ φ̇
π E2 B(r) 2 L2 ǫ
and we fix θ = θ0 = ⇒ L=− + ṙ + 2 = (13)
2 2A(r) 2 2r 2
We have r = r(τ ) but we want to express r as a function of φ, as we do so
′
this implies that ṙ = r ′ φ̇ = Lr ′ dr
r 2 and we get with r = r(φ) and r = dφ :

E2 r′2 1 ǫ
− 2
+ B(r) 4
+ 2 = 2 (14)
L A(r) r r L
′
Finally, we change variable from r to u = 1/r (⇒ r ′ = − uu2 ) and (4) becomes
:
2 ǫ E2
B̃(u)u′ + u2 = 2 + (15)
L L2 Ã(u)
where B̃(u) = B(r(u)) = B( u1 ) and the same for Ã(u).

2
(b) For ǫ = 0 one has
2 E2
B̃(u)u′ + u2 = (16)
L2 Ã(u)
Thus at a truning point one has

E2
u2m = (17)
L2 Ã(um )

and one can trade the parameter E 2 /L2 for um ,

" #−1/2
′2 2 Ã(um ) dφ 2 Ã(um )
B̃(u)u + u = u2m ⇒ = ±B̃(u)1/2
um −u 2
Ã(u) du Ã(u)
(18)
(c) For A = B = 1 one gets (choosing wlog the + sign in the above equation),

dφ  2 −1/2
= um − u 2 (19)
du
This elementary differential equation is solved by

u(φ) = um sin(φ − φ0 ) ⇒ r sin(φ − φ0 ) = u−1

m (20)

which is the equation of a straight line in R2 (ax+by = c) in polar coordinates.