Abstract
We classify all spherically symmetric dust solutions of Einstein’s equations which are self-similar in the sense that all dimensionless variables depend only upon We show that the equations can be reduced to a special case of the general perfect fluid models with an equation of state The most general dust solution can be written down explicitly and is described by two parameters. The first one (E) corresponds to the asymptotic energy at large while the second one (D) specifies the value of z at the singularity which characterizes such models. The solution is just the flat Friedmann model. The 1-parameter family of solutions with and are inhomogeneous cosmological models which expand from a big bang singularity at and are asymptotically Friedmann at large z; models with are everywhere underdense relative to Friedmann and expand forever, while those with are everywhere overdense and recollapse to a black hole containing another singularity. The black hole always has an apparent horizon but need not have an event horizon. The solutions with are just the time reverse of the ones, having a big crunch at The 2-parameter solutions with again represent inhomogeneous cosmological models but the big bang singularity is at the big crunch singularity is at and any particular solution necessarily spans both and While there is no static model in the dust case, all these solutions are asymptotically “quasi-static” at large As in the case, the ones with expand or contract monotonically but the latter may now contain a naked singularity. The ones with expand from or recollapse to a second singularity, the latter containing a black hole. The 2-parameter solutions with models either collapse to a shell-crossing singularity and become unphysical or expand from such a state.
- Received 23 December 1999
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevD.62.044022
©2000 American Physical Society