Bounds on negative energy densities in static space-times

Certain exotic phenomena in general relativity, such as backward time travel, appear to require the presence of matter with negative energy. While quantum fields are a possible source of negative energy densities, there are lower bounds—known as quantum inequalities—that constrain their duration and magnitude. In this paper, we derive new quantum inequalities for scalar fields in static space-times, as measured by static observers with a choice of sampling function. Unlike those previously derived by Pfenning and Ford, our results do not assume any specific sampling function. We then calculate these bounds in static three- and four-dimensional Robertson-Walker universes, the de Sitter universe, and the Schwarzschild black hole. In each case, the new inequality is stronger than that of Pfenning and Ford for their particular choice of sampling function.