Govind Menon, Ph.D.                                

Professor of Physics

Department of Mathematics & Physics

Troy University. Troy, Al 36082

E-mail: gmenon@troy.edu

 

 

 

 

  The black holes of nature are the most perfect macroscopic objects there are in the universe:

 the only elements in their construction are our concepts of space and time.

-         S. Chandrashekar

 

 

Publications

 

Book In Print

 

Research Interest

General Relativity, Astrophysical Applications of GR, Quantum Fields in curved Spacetime.

 

General Interest

Chandra Telescope

Astronomy Picture of the Day

 

Archives

NASA Astrophysical Archives

http://xxx.lanl.gov/

 

 

Fermi ( formerly GLAST ) lifts off

 

 

Current Research Project

 

General Relativity (Black Hole Astrophysics)

The process of energy extraction from a rotating Black Hole is being studied from an analytical point of view. This is one of the central problems that the Gamma Ray Large Area Telescope (Fermi) will provide data to solve (which with any luck can be compared to the analytical solution). Major subsystems of Fermi are being developed in the High Energy Space Environment Branch at the Naval Research Laboratory. This Collaborative research with Dr. Charles Dermer should lead to insights that will further motivate research in GLAST science.

 

Quantum Fields in Black Hole Spacetimes

Using a global time formalism for causal fields in Kerr Geometry, I hope to find analytical solutions to free field equations in Kerr Spacetime. Following this, I hope to develop the quantum theory of fields in a Kerr Spacetime in an explicit manner.  Only then is it possible to place astro-particle physics of Black Holes in a strong theoretical footing.