Pair Creation of Black Holes

Abstract

This article is based on a talk given at the IInd International Colloquium on Modern Quantum Field Theory, Bombay 1994. The Ernst solution of dilaton gravity describes charged black holes undergoing uniform accleration in a background magnetic field. By analytically continuing the Ernst solution one obtains instantons that describe the pair production of black holes in the background field. We review various aspects of these solutions paying special attention to the Einstein-Maxwell, low-energy string and $d=5$ Kaluza-Klein theories. It is based on work done in collaboration with {}F. Dowker, S. Giddings, G. Horowitz, D. Kastor and J. Traschen \refs{\DGKT,\DGGH}.