Thermodynamics for radiating shells in anti-de Sitter space–time

A thermodynamical description for the quasi-static collapse of radiating, self-gravitating spherical shells of matter in anti-de Sitter space–time is obtained. It is shown that the specific heat at constant area and other thermodynamical quantities may diverge before a black hole has eventually formed. This suggests the possibility of a phase transition occurring along the collapse process. The differences with respect to the asymptotically flat case are also highlighted.