N-dimensional Vaidya metric with a cosmological constant in double-null coordinates

Abstract

A recently proposed approach to the construction of the Vaidya metric in double-null coordinates for generic mass functions is extended to the $n$-dimensional ($ng2$) case and to allow the inclusion of a cosmological constant. The approach is based on a qualitative study of the null geodesics, allowing the description of light cones and revealing many features of the underlying causal structure. Possible applications are illustrated by explicit examples. Some new exact solutions are also presented and discussed. The results presented here can simplify considerably the study of spherically symmetric gravitational collapse and mass accretion in arbitrary dimensions.