Finite model of an electric charge

Abstract

We set up a model of an electric charge where the noninvertible metric phase of first order gravity supercedes the point charge singularity in a curved spacetime. A topological interpretation of the electric charge is provided in terms of an index defined for the degenerate spacetime solution, being closely related to the Euler characteristic. The gravitational equations of motion at this phase are found to be equivalent to the laws of electrostatics. The associated field energy is finite and the geometry sourcing the charge is regular.