Fine-grained state counting for black holes in loop quantum gravity

Understand

A state of a black hole in loop quantum gravity is given by a distribution of spins on punctures on the horizon.

• The distribution is of the Boltzmann type, with the area playing the role of the energy.
• In investigations where the total area was kept approximately constant, there was a kind of thermal equilibrium between the spins which have the same analogue temperature and the entropy was proportional to the area.
• If the area is precisely fixed, however, multiple constraints appear, different spins have different analogue temperatures and the entropy is not strictly linear in the area, but is bounded by a linear rise.