Virial identities in relativistic gravity: 1D effective actions and the role of boundary terms

Virial (aka scaling) identities are integral identities that are useful for a variety of purposes in nonlinear field theories, including establishing no-go theorems for solitonic and black hole solutions, as well as for checking the accuracy of numerical solutions. In this paper, we provide a pedagogical rationale for the derivation of such integral identities, starting from the standard variational treatment of particle mechanics. In the framework of one-dimensional (1D) effective actions, the treatment presented here yields a set of useful formulas for computing virial identities in any field theory. Then, we propose that a complete treatment of virial identities in relativistic gravity must take into account the appropriate boundary term. For General Relativity this is the Gibbons-Hawking-York boundary term. We test and confirm this proposal with concrete examples. Our analysis here is restricted to spherically symmetric configurations, which yield 1D effective actions (leaving higher-D effective actions and in particular the axially symmetric case to a companion paper). In this case, we show that there is a particular gauge choice, i.e. a choice of coordinates and parametrizing metric functions, that simplifies the computation of virial identities in General Relativity, making both the Einstein-Hilbert action and the Gibbons-Hawking-York boundary term noncontributing. Under this choice, the virial identity results exclusively from the matter action. For generic gauge choices, however, this is not the case.

Automated summary

Virial identities, also known as scaling identities, are important integral identities in nonlinear field theories. This paper provides a pedagogical rationale for deriving such integral identities from a standard variational treatment. The authors emphasize the importance of including appropriate boundary terms in relativistic gravity, and show that specific gauge choices can simplify the computation of virial identities in General Relativity.