Eddington-inspired Born-Infeld Research Articles

Black hole solution and strong gravitational lensing in Eddington-inspired Born–Infeld gravity

A new theory of gravity called Eddington-inspired Born-Infeld (EiBI) gravity was recently proposed by Ba\~{n}ados and Ferreira. This theory leads to some exciting new features, such as free of cosmological singularities. In this paper, we first obtain a charged EiBI black hole solution with a nonvanishing cosmological constant when the electromagnetic field is included in. Then based on it, we study the strong gravitational lensing by the asymptotic flat charged EiBI black hole. The strong deflection limit coefficients and observables are shown to closely depend on the additional coupling parameter $\kappa$ in the EiBI gravity. It is found that, compared with the corresponding charged black hole in general relativity, the positive coupling parameter $\kappa$ will shrink the black hole horizon and photon sphere. Moreover, the coupling parameter will decrease the angular position and relative magnitudes of the relativistic images, while increase the angular separation, which may shine new light on testing such gravity theory in near future by the astronomical instruments.

Scalar perturbation produced at the pre-inflationary stage in Eddington-inspired Born–Infeld gravity

We investigate the scalar perturbation produced at the pre-inflationary stage driven by a massive scalar field in Eddington-inspired Born–Infeld gravity. The scalar power spectrum exhibits a peculiar rise for low k-modes. The tensor-to-scalar ratio can be significantly lowered compared with that in the standard chaotic inflation model in general relativity. This result is very affirmative considering the recent dispute on the detection of gravitational wave radiation between PLANCK and BICEP2.

Magnetized relativistic stellar models in Eddington-inspired Born-Infeld gravity

We consider the structure of the magnetic fields inside the neutron stars in Eddington-inspired Born-Infeld (EiBI) gravity. In order to construct the magnetic fields, we derive the relativistic Grad-Shafranov equation in EiBI, and numerically determine the magnetic distribution in such a way that the interior magnetic fields should be connected to the exterior distribution. Then, we find that the magnetic distribution inside the neutron stars in EiBI is qualitatively similar to that in general relativity, where the deviation of magnetic distribution in EiBI from that in general relativity is almost comparable to uncertainty due to the equation of state (EOS) for the neutron star matter. However, we also find that the magnetic fields in the crust region are almost independent of the coupling constant in EiBI, which suggests a possibility to obtain the information about the crust EOS independently of the gravitational theory via the observations of the phenomena associated with the crust region. In any case, since the imprint of EiBI gravity on the magnetic fields is weak, the magnetic fields could be a poor probe of gravitational theories, considering many magnetic uncertainties.

Upper limit on the central density of dark matter in the Eddington-inspired Born–Infeld (EiBI) gravity

We investigate the stability of circular material orbits in the analytic galactic metric recently derived by Harko et al., Mod. Phys. Lett. A29, 1450049 (2014). It turns out that stability depends more strongly on the dark matter central density ρ0 than on other parameters of the solution. This property then yields an upper limit on ρ0 for each individual galaxy, which we call here [Formula: see text], such that stable circular orbits are possible only when the constraint [Formula: see text] is satisfied. This is our new result. To approximately quantify the upper limit, we consider as a familiar example our Milky Way galaxy that has a projected dark matter radius R DM ~180 kpc and find that [Formula: see text]. This limit turns out to be about four orders of magnitude larger than the latest data on central density ρ0 arising from the fit to the Navarro–Frenk–White (NFW) and Burkert density profiles. Such consistency indicates that the Eddington-inspired Born–Infeld (EiBI) solution could qualify as yet another viable alternative model for dark matter.

Tensor-to-scalar ratio in Eddington-inspired Born–Infeld inflation

We investigate the scalar perturbation of the inflation model driven by a massive-scalar field in Eddington-inspired Born-Infeld gravity. We focus on the perturbation at the attractor stage in which the first and the second slow-roll conditions are satisfied. The scalar perturbation exhibits the corrections to the chaotic inflation model in general relativity. We find that the tensor-to-scalar ratio becomes smaller than that of the usual chaotic inflation.

Bianchi Type I Cosmological Models in Eddington-inspired Born–Infeld Gravity

We consider the dynamics of a barotropic cosmological fluid in an anisotropic, Bianchi type I space-time in Eddington-inspired Born–Infeld (EiBI) gravity. By assuming isotropic pressure distribution, we obtain the general solution of the field equations in an exact parametric form. The behavior of the geometric and thermodynamic parameters of the Bianchi type I Universe is studied, by using both analytical and numerical methods, for some classes of high density matter, described by the stiff causal, radiation, and pressureless fluid equations of state. In all cases the study of the models with different equations of state can be reduced to the integration of a highly nonlinear second order ordinary differential equation for the energy density. The time evolution of the anisotropic Bianchi type I Universe strongly depends on the initial values of the energy density and of the Hubble function. An important observational parameter, the mean anisotropy parameter, is also studied in detail, and we show that for the dust filled Universe the cosmological evolution always ends into isotropic phase, while for high density matter filled universes the isotropization of Bianchi type I universes is essentially determined by the initial conditions of the energy density.

Large scale structure formation in Eddington-inspired Born-Infeld gravity

We study the large scale structure formation in Eddington-inspired Born-Infeld (EiBI) gravity. It is found that the linear growth of scalar perturbations in EiBI gravity deviates from that in general relativity for modes with large wave numbers ($k$), but the deviation is largely suppressed with the expansion of the Universe. We investigate the integrated Sachs-Wolfe effect in EiBI gravity, and find that its effect on the angular power spectrum of the anisotropy of the cosmic microwave background (CMB) is almost the same as that in the Lambda-cold dark matter ($\Lambda$CDM) model. We further calculate the linear matter power spectrum in EiBI gravity and compare it with that in the $\Lambda$CDM model. Deviation is found on small scales ($k\gtrsim 0.1 h$ Mpc$^{-1}$), which can be tested in the future by observations from galaxy surveys.

Dark matter density profile and galactic metric in Eddington-inspired Born–Infeld gravity

We consider the density profile of pressureless dark matter in Eddington-inspired Born–Infeld (EiBI) gravity. The gravitational field equations are investigated for a spherically symmetric dark matter galactic halo, by adopting a phenomenological tangential velocity profile for test particles moving in stable circular orbits around the galactic center. The density profile and the mass distribution, as well as the general form of the metric tensor is obtained by numerically integrating the gravitational field equations, and in an approximate analytical form by using the Newtonian limit of the theory. In the weak field limit, the dark matter density distribution is described by the Lane–Emden equation with polytropic index n = 1, and is nonsingular at the galactic center. The parameter κ of the theory is determined so that the theory could provide a realistic description of the dark matter halos. The gravitational properties of the dark matter halos are also briefly discussed in the Newtonian approximation.

Physics at the surface of a star in Eddington-inspired Born-Infeld Gravity

We study phenomena happening at the surface of a star in Eddington-inspired Born-Infeld (EiBI) gravity. The star is made of particles, which are effectively described by a polytropic fluid. The EiBI theory was known to have a pathology that singularities happen at a star surface. We suggest that the gravitational backreaction on the particles cures the problem. Strong tidal forces near the (surface) singularity modify the effective equation of state of the particles or make the surface be unstable depending on its matter contents. The geodesic deviation equations take after Hooke's law, where its frequency squared is proportional to the scalar curvature at the surface. For a positive curvature, a particle collides with a probing wall more often and increases the pressure. With the increased pressure, the surface is no longer singular. For a negative curvature, the matters around the surface experience repulsions with infinite accelerations. Therefore, the EiBI gravity is saved from the pathology of a surface singularity.

Geonic black holes and remnants in Eddington-inspired Born-Infeld gravity.

We show that electrically charged solutions within the Eddington-inspired Born–Infeld theory of gravity replace the central singularity by a wormhole supported by the electric field. As a result, the total energy associated with the electric field is finite and similar to that found in the Born–Infeld electromagnetic theory. When a certain charge-to-mass ratio is satisfied, in the lowest part of the mass and charge spectrum the event horizon disappears, yielding stable remnants. We argue that quantum effects in the matter sector can lower the mass of these remnants from the Planck scale down to the TeV scale.

Is Eddington–Born–Infeld theory really free of cosmological singularities?

The Eddington-inspired-Born-Infeld (EiBI) theory has been recently resurrected. Such a theory is characterized by being equivalent to Einstein theory in vacuum but differing from it in the presence of matter. One of the virtues of the theory is to avoid the Big Bang singularity for a radiation filled universe. In this paper, we analyze singularity avoidance in this kind of model. More precisely, we analyze the behavior of a homogeneous and isotropic universe filled with phantom energy in addition to the dark and baryonic matter. Unlike the Big Bang singularity that can be avoided in this kind of model through a bounce or a loitering effect on the physical metric, we find that the Big Rip singularity is unavoidable in the EiBI phantom model even though it can be postponed towards a slightly further future cosmic time as compared with the same singularity in other models based on the standard general relativity and with the same matter content described above.

TESTING UNIVERSAL RELATIONS OF NEUTRON STARS WITH A NONLINEAR MATTER-GRAVITY COUPLING THEORY

Due to our ignorance of the equation of state (EOS) beyond nuclear density, there is still no unique theoretical model for neutron stars (NSs). It is therefore surprising that universal EOS-independent relations connecting different physical quantities of neutron stars can exist. Lau et al. [ApJ, 714, 1234 (2010)] found that the frequency of the $f$-mode oscillation, the mass, and the moment of inertia are connected by universal relations. More recently, Yagi and Yunes [Science, 341, 365 (2013)] discovered the I-Love-Q universal relations among the mass, the moment of inertia, the Love number, and the quadrupole moment. In this paper, we study these universal relations in the Eddington-inspired Born-Infeld (EiBI) gravity. This theory differs from general relativity (GR) significantly only at high densities due to the nonlinear coupling between matter and gravity. It thus provides us an ideal case to test how robust the universal relations of NSs are with respect to the change of the gravity theory. Thanks to the apparent EOS formulation of EiBI gravity developed recently by Delsate and Steinhoff [Phys. Rev. Lett., 109, 021101 (2012)], we are able to study the universal relations in EiBI gravity using the same techniques as those in GR. We find that the universal relations in EiBI gravity are essentially the same as those in GR. Our work shows that, within the currently viable coupling constant, there exists at least one modified gravity theory that is indistinguishable from GR in view of the unexpected universal relations.

Structure of neutron, quark, and exotic stars in Eddington-inspired Born-Infeld gravity

We consider the structure and physical properties of specific classes of neutron, quark, and ``exotic'' stars in Eddington-inspired Born-Infeld (EiBI) gravity. The latter reduces to standard general relativity in vacuum, but presents a different behavior of the gravitational field in the presence of matter. The equilibrium equations for a spherically symmetric configuration (mass continuity and Tolman-Oppenheimer-Volkoff) are derived, and their solutions are obtained numerically for different equations of state of neutron and quark matter. More specifically, stellar models, described by the stiff fluid, radiationlike, polytropic and the bag model quark equations of state are explicitly constructed in both general relativity and EiBI gravity, thus allowing a comparison between the predictions of these two gravitational models. As a general result it turns out that for all the considered equations of state, EiBI gravity stars are more massive than their general relativistic counterparts. Furthermore, an exact solution of the spherically symmetric field equations in EiBI gravity, describing an exotic star, with decreasing pressure but increasing energy density, is also obtained. As a possible astrophysical application of the obtained results we suggest that stellar mass black holes, with masses in the range of $3.8{M}_{\ensuremath{\bigodot}}$ and $6{M}_{\ensuremath{\bigodot}}$, respectively, could be in fact EiBI neutron or quark stars.

Compact stars in Eddington-inspired Born-Infeld gravity: Anomalies associated with phase transitions

We study how generic phase transitions taking place in compact stars constructed in the framework of the Eddington-inspired Born-Infeld (EiBI) gravity can lead to anomalous behavior of these stars. For the case with first-order phase transitions, compact stars in EiBI gravity with a positive coupling parameter $\kappa $ exhibit a finite region with constant pressure, which is absent in general relativity. However, for the case with a negative $\kappa $, an equilibrium stellar configuration cannot be constructed. Hence, EiBI gravity seems to impose stricter constraints on the microphysics of stellar matter. Besides, in the presence of spatial discontinuities in the sound speed $c_s$ due to phase transitions, the Ricci scalar is spatially discontinuous and contains $\delta$-function singularities proportional to the jump in $c_s^2$ acquired in the associated phase transition.