Lifshitz black holes in string theory

TL;DR

This paper presents the first explicit Lifshitz black hole solutions in string theory, revealing unique thermodynamic properties and potential phase transitions, thus advancing the understanding of holographic duals with anisotropic scaling.

Contribution

It introduces the first Lifshitz black hole solutions within string theory using a consistent supergravity truncation, highlighting novel thermodynamic behaviors distinct from phenomenological models.

Findings

Small black holes are thermodynamically unstable.

Extremality is never achieved in these solutions.

Indications of a Hawking-Page like phase transition at low temperatures.

Abstract

We provide the first black hole solutions with Lifshitz asymptotics found in string theory. These are expected to be dual to models enjoying anisotropic scale invariance with dynamical exponent z=2 at finite temperature. We employ a consistent truncation of type IIB supergravity to four dimensions with an arbitrary 5-dimensional Einstein manifold times a circle as internal geometry. New interesting features are found that significantly differ from previous results in phenomenological models. In particular, small black holes are shown to be thermodynamically unstable, analogously to the usual AdS-Schwarzschild black holes, and extremality is never reached. This signals a possible Hawking-Page like phase transition at low temperatures.