Abstract
In four-dimensional asymptotically flat spacetimes, an infinite tower of soft graviton modes is known to generate the symmetry algebra of w1+∞ at tree-level. Here we demonstrate that the symmetry action follows from soft graviton theorems and acts non-trivially on massive scalar particles. By generalizing previous analyses that were specifically tailored to the scattering of massless particles, our results clarify that w1+∞ symmetry is a universal feature of tree-level gravitational scattering in four-dimensional asymptotically flat spacetimes and originates from minimally-coupled gravitational interactions. In addition, we show that the w1+∞ symmetry acts non-diagonally on massive states by mixing an infinite number of conformal families. We also present a concrete example of non-local behavior on the celestial sphere in the presence of massive scattering states.
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Acknowledgments
We are grateful to Nick Agia, Alfredo Guevara, Hofie Hannesdottir, Aidan Herderschee, Y.T. Albert Law, Donal O’Connell, and Ana Raclariu for insightful conversations. This work was supported by NSF grant 2310633.
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Himwich, E., Pate, M. w1+∞ in 4D gravitational scattering. J. High Energ. Phys. 2024, 180 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/JHEP07(2024)180
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/JHEP07(2024)180