Is It Really Naked? On Cosmic Censorship in String Theory

TL;DR

This paper uses high-resolution numerical simulations in string theory to test the cosmic censorship conjecture, finding no evidence of naked singularities and supporting the formation of black holes instead.

Contribution

It provides the first detailed numerical analysis in string theory context that challenges previous claims of naked singularity formation.

Findings

No naked singularities observed in simulations

Black holes form in all collapse scenarios tested

Results support cosmic censorship in string theory context

Abstract

We investigate the possibility of cosmic censorship violation in string theory using a characteristic double-null code, which penetrates horizons and is capable of resolving the spacetime all the way to the singularity. We perform high-resolution numerical simulations of the evolution of negative mass initial scalar field profiles, which were argued to provide a counterexample to cosmic censorship conjecture for AdS-asymptotic spacetimes in five-dimensional supergravity. In no instances formation of naked singularity is seen. Instead, numerical evidence indicates that black holes form in the collapse. Our results are consistent with earlier numerical studies, and explicitly show where the `no black hole' argument breaks.