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  • Letter
  • Open Access

Symmetry restoration and vacuum decay from accretion around black holes

James Marsden1,*, Josu C. Aurrekoetxea1,†, Katy Clough2,‡, and Pedro G. Ferreira1,§

  • *Contact author: james.marsden@physics.ox.ac.uk
  • †Contact author: josu.aurrekoetxea@physics.ox.ac.uk
  • ‡Contact author: k.clough@qmul.ac.uk
  • §Contact author: pedro.ferreira@physics.ox.ac.uk
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Phys. Rev. D 111, L041501 – Published 4 February, 2025

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevD.111.L041501

Abstract

Vacuum decay and symmetry breaking play an important role in the fundamental structure of the matter and the evolution of the Universe. In this work we study how the purely classical effect of accretion of fundamental fields onto black holes can lead to shells of symmetry restoration in the midst of a symmetry broken phase. We also show how it can catalyze vacuum decay, forming a bubble that expands asymptotically at the speed of light. These effects offer an alternative, purely classical mechanism to quantum tunneling for seeding phase transitions in the Universe.

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Phys. Rev. D 111, L041501– Published 4 February, 2025
  • Received 28 March 2024
  • Revised 9 September 2024
  • Accepted 2 January 2025
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