Temporal contribution to gravitational WKB-like calculations

Recently, it has been shown that the radiation arising from quantum fields placed in a gravitational background (e.g. Hawking radiation) can be derived using a quasi-classical calculation. Here we show that this method has a previously overlooked temporal contribution to the quasi-classical amplitude. The source of this temporal contribution lies in different character of time in general relativity versus quantum mechanics. Only when one takes into account this temporal contribution does one obtain the canonical temperature for the radiation. Although in this Letter the specific example of radiation in de Sitter space-time is used. the temporal contribution is a general contribution to the radiation given off by any gravitational background where the time coordinate changes its signature upon crossing a horizon. Thus, the quasi-classical method for gravitational backgrounds contains subtleties not found in the usual quantum mechanical tunneling problem. (C) 2008 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.