Uniqueness of equipotential photon surfaces in 4-dimensional static vacuum asymptotically flat spacetimes for positive, negative, and zero mass -- and a new partial proof of the Willmore inequality

TL;DR

This paper proves the uniqueness of equipotential photon surfaces in 4D static vacuum spacetimes for all mass cases, extending previous results and providing new proofs, including a novel approach to the Willmore inequality.

Contribution

It offers multiple new proofs of photon surface uniqueness in all mass scenarios, including a new partial proof of the Willmore inequality, broadening the understanding of these geometric structures.

Findings

Uniqueness of equipotential photon surfaces in all mass cases.

Multiple proofs based on different approaches, including a new proof of the Willmore inequality.

Extension of previous results to negative and zero mass cases.

Abstract

We present different proofs of the uniqueness of 4-dimensional static vacuum asymptotically flat spacetimes containing a connected equipotential photon surface or in particular a connected photon sphere. We do not assume that the equipotential photon surface is outward directed or non-degenerate and hence cover not only the positive but also the negative and the zero mass case which has not yet been treated in the literature. Our results partially reproduce and extend beyond results by Cederbaum and by Cederbaum and Galloway. In the positive and negative mass cases, we give three proofs which are based on the approaches to proving black hole uniqueness by Israel, Robinson, and Agostiniani--Mazzieri, respectively. In the zero mass case, we give four proofs. One is based on the positive mass theorem, the second one is inspired by Israel's approach and in particular leads to a new proof of the Willmore inequality in $(\mathbb{R}^3, \delta)$, under a technical assumption. The remaining two proofs are inspired by proofs of the Willmore inequality by Cederbaum and Miehe and by Agostiniani and Mazzieri, respectively. In particular, this suggests to view the Willmore inequality and its rigidity case as a zero mass version of equipotential photon surface uniqueness.