Prof. Emil Mottola, Los Alamos
Gravitational Vacuum Condensate Stars
September 27, 2005

A new final state of gravitational collapse is proposed.
By extending the concept of Bose-Einstein condensation to gravitational
systems, a cold, dark, compact object with an interior de Sitter
condensate p=-rho and an exterior Schwarzschild geometry of arbitrary
total mass M is constructed. These are separated by a shell with a small but
finite proper thickness $\ell$ of fluid with eq. of state p=+\rho, replacing
both the Schwarzschild and de Sitter classical horizons.
The new solution has no singularities, no event horizons, and a global
time. Its entropy is maximized under small fluctuations and is given by the
standard hydrodynamic entropy of the thin shell, which is many orders of
magnitude less than the Bekenstein-Hawking entropy. Hence unlike black holes,
the new solution is thermodynamically stable and has no information paradox.
The effective field theory approach to gravity that leads to
this new solution, and possible astrophysical and cosmological tests
for this new proposal will be discussed if time permits.