On the meaning of the separation constant in the Kerr metric
- 5 August 1999
- journal article
- Published by IOP Publishing in Classical and Quantum Gravity
- Vol. 16 (9) , 2929-2935
- https://doi.org/10.1088/0264-9381/16/9/310
Abstract
The existence of a fourth constant of motion, beyond rest mass, energy and axial angular momentum, for a free particle in a Kerr spacetime has been shown by Carter through the separability of the Hamilton-Jacobi equation using oblate spheroidal coordinates. This fourth constant of motion is connected to a second-rank Stackel-Killing tensor related to the symmetries of the Kerr solution; while this mathematical aspect is clear, the physical meaning of the separation constant is not. In this note we solve this problem, showing how the separation constant can be interpreted physically.Keywords
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