Generalized volume-complexity for RN-AdS black hole

Abstract

The connection between quantum information and quantum gravity has captured the imagination of physicists. Recently, a broad new class of gravitational observables have been proposed to provide new possibilities for holographic complexity [1], which is an extension of volume in the Complexity=Volume proposal. In this paper, we investigate generalized volume-complexity for the 4-dimensional Reissner-Nordström-AdS black hole. These new gravitational observables satisfy the characteristic of the thermofield double state, i.e., they grow linearly in time on the late stage. We find that there are multiple extremal hypersurfaces anchored at a certain boundary time. In other words, for the same boundary time, more than one gravitational observable (generalized volume-complexity) can exist in the bulk. The size relationship of the gravitational observables on the two hypersurfaces changes over time. This will result in the substitution of the maximum extreme hypersurface which is dual to the complexity of the thermofield double state. We call the time when one hypersurface replaces another to become the largest extreme hypersurface the turning time τturning. That is, a hypersurface dual to the complexity of the thermofield double state defined on the boundary jumps from one branch to another. This discontinuous jump is highly reminiscent of a phase transition, and the turning time denotes the moment at which this phase transition occurs. Our findings propose a discontinuous variation in bulk physics that is dual to the complexity of the thermofield double state defined on the boundary.