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Does the entropy of the Universe tend to a maximum?

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Abstract

Ordinary, macroscopic systems, naturally tend to a state of maximum entropy compatible with their constraints. However, this might not hold for gravity-dominated systems since their entropy may increase without bound unless this is precluded by the formation of a black hole. In this short note we suggest, based on the Hubble expansion history, that our Universe likely behaves as an ordinary system, i.e., that its entropy seems to tend to some maximum value.

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Acknowledgments

We are grateful to Fernando Atrio-Barandela and José Gaite for constructive remarks. NR is funded by the Spanish Ministry of Education through the “Subprograma Estancias de Jóvenes Doctores Extranjeros, Modalidad B”, Ref: SB2009-0056. This work was partly supported by the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation under Grant FIS2009-13370-C02-01, and the “Direcció de Recerca de la Generalitat” under Grant 2009SGR-00164.

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Correspondence to Ninfa Radicella.

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Pavón, D., Radicella, N. Does the entropy of the Universe tend to a maximum?. Gen Relativ Gravit 45, 63–68 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10714-012-1457-x

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10714-012-1457-x

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