Abstract
In this work a relation between topology and thermodynamical features of gravitational instantons is shown. The expression for the Euler characteristic, through the Gauss-Bonnet integral, and the one for the entropy of gravitational instantons are proposed in a form that makes the relation between them self-evident. A new formulation of the Bekenstein-Hawking formula, where the entropy and the Euler characteristic are related by is obtained. This formula provides the correct results for a wide class of gravitational instantons described by both spherically and axially symmetric metrics.
- Received 12 March 1997
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevD.56.6458
©1997 American Physical Society