What simplified models say about unitarity and gravitational collapse

Abstract

This paper is an extended version of a talk at the conference Constrained Dynamics and Quantum Gravity QG99. It reviews some work on the quantum collapse of the spherically symmetric gravitating thin shell of zero rest mass. Recent results on Kuchař decomposition are applied. The constructed version of quantum mechanics is unitary, although the shell falls under its Schwarzschild radius if its energy is high enough. Rather that a permanent black hole, something like a transient black and white hole pair seems to be created in such a case.