Black hole excited states from broken translations in Euclidean time

Abstract

Abstract We prepare an excited finite temperature state in $$ \mathcal{N} $$ N = 4 SYM by means of a Euclidean path integral with a relevant deformation. The deformation explicitly breaks imaginary-time translations along the thermal circle whilst preserving its periodicity. We then study how the state relaxes to thermal equilibrium in real time. Computations are performed using real-time AdS/CFT, by constructing novel mixed-signature black holes in numerical relativity corresponding to Schwinger-Keldysh boundary conditions. These correspond to deformed cigar geometries in the Euclidean, glued to a pair of dynamical spacetimes in the Lorentzian.The maximal extension of the Lorentzian black hole exhibits a ‘causal shadow’, a bulk region which is spacelike separated from both boundaries. We show that causal shadows are generic in path-integral prepared states where imaginary-time translations along the thermal circle are broken.