https://doi.org/10.1140/epjh/s13129-026-00116-2
Regular Article
The birth of gravitational particle creation: the enduring legacy of Leonard Parker’s 1966 thesis
1
Department of Mathematics, Utrecht University, Princetonplein 5, 3584 CC, Utrecht, The Netherlands
2
Departamento de Física Teórica, Instituto de Física Corpuscular (IFIC), CSIC-Universitat de València, C/Doctor Moliner 50, 46100, Burjassot, Spain
3
Physik-Department, Technische Universität München, James-Franck-Str., 85748, Garching, Germany
a
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Received:
17
November
2025
Accepted:
28
January
2026
Published online:
4
March
2026
Abstract
This paper offers a historical overview of the origins and enduring significance of gravitational particle creation, a groundbreaking discovery first formulated in Leonard Parker’s 1966 doctoral thesis at Harvard University. By tracing the context in which Parker developed this idea and examining its subsequent influence, the paper highlights how the concept of gravitational particle creation advanced the study of quantum field theory in curved spacetime and profoundly shaped modern cosmology, as well as the quantum theory of black holes.
Antonio Ferreiro, José Navarro-Salas, and Silvia Pla have contributed equally to this work.
© The Author(s) 2026
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