Generalized Gravity Theories Research Articles

Nonminimal coupling and inflationary attractors

We show explicitly how the T model, E model, and Hilltop inflations are obtained from the general scalar-tensor theory of gravity with arbitrary conformal factors in the strong coupling limit. We argue that $\xi$ attractors can give any observables $n_s$ and $r$ by this method. The existence of attractors imposes a challenge to distinguish different models.

Generalized charged Nariai solutions in arbitrary even dimensions with multiple magnetic charges

Higher-dimensional solutions for Einstein-Maxwell equations that generalize the charged Nariai spacetime are obtained. The solutions presented here are made from the direct product of several 2-spaces of constant curvature. These solutions turn out to have many magnetic charges, contrary to the usual higher-dimensional generalization of the Nariai spacetime, which has no magnetic charge at all. These solutions are then used to generate black hole metrics. Finally, it is analyzed how these generalized Nariai solutions are modified in more general theories of gravity.

Einsteinian cubic gravity

We drastically simplify the problem of linearizing a general higher-order theory of gravity. We reduce it to the evaluation of its Lagrangian on a particular Riemann tensor depending on two parameters, and the computation of two derivatives with respect to one of those parameters. We use our method to construct a D-dimensional cubic theory of gravity which satisfies the following properties: 1) it shares the spectrum of Einstein gravity, i.e., it only propagates a transverse and massless graviton on a maximally symmetric background; 2) the relative coefficients of the different curvature invariants involved are the same in all dimensions; 3) it is neither trivial nor topological in four dimensions. Up to cubic order in curvature, the only previously known theories satisfying the first two requirements are the Lovelock ones: Einstein gravity, Gauss-Bonnet and cubic-Lovelock. Of course, the last two theories fail to satisfy requirement 3 as they are, respectively, topological and trivial in four dimensions. We show that, up to cubic order, there exists only one additional theory satisfying requirements 1 and 2. Interestingly, this theory is, along with Einstein gravity, the only theory which also satisfies 3.

Mass bounds for compact spherically symmetric objects in generalized gravity theories

We derive upper and lower bounds on the mass-radius ratio of stable compact objects in extended gravity theories, in which modifications of the gravitational dynamics via-{\' a}-vis standard general relativity are described by an effective contribution to the matter energy-momentum tensor. Our results include the possibility of a variable coupling between the matter sector and the gravitational field and are valid for a large class of generalized gravity models. The generalized continuity and Tolman-Oppenheimer-Volkoff equations are expressed in terms of the effective mass, density and pressure, given by the bare values plus additional contributions from the total energy-momentum tensor, and general theoretical limits for the maximum and minimum mass-radius ratios are explicitly obtained. As an applications of the formalism developed herein, we consider compact bosonic objects, described by scalar-tensor gravitational theories with self-interacting scalar field potentials, and charged compact objects, respectively. For Higgs type models, we find that these bounds can be expressed in terms of the value of the potential at the surface of the compact object. Minimizing the energy with respect to the radius, we obtain explicit upper and lower bounds on the mass, which admits a Chandrasekhar type representation. For charged compact objects, we consider the effects of the Poincar\'{e} stresses on the equilibrium structure and obtain bounds on the radial and tangential stresses. As a possible astrophysical test of our results, we obtain the general bound on the gravitational redshift for compact objects in extended gravity theories. General implications of minimum mass bounds for the gravitational stability of fundamental particles and for the existence of holographic duality between bulk and boundary degrees of freedom are also considered.

Higher derivative gravity: Field equation as the equation of state

One of the striking features of general relativity is that the Einstein equation is implied by the Clausius relation imposed on a small patch of locally constructed causal horizon. Extension of this thermodynamic derivation of the field equation to more general theories of gravity has been attempted many times in the last two decades. In particular, equations of motion for minimally coupled higher curvature theories of gravity, but without the derivatives of curvature, have previously been derived using a thermodynamic reasoning. In that derivation the horizon slices were endowed with an entropy density whose form resembles that of the Noether charge for diffeomorphisms, and was dubbed the Noetheresque entropy. In this paper, we propose a new entropy density, closely related to the Noetheresque form, such that the field equation of any diffeomorphism invariant metric theory of gravity can be derived by imposing the Clausius relation on a small patch of local causal horizon.

Towards the most general scalar-tensor theories of gravity: A unified approach in the language of differential forms

We use a description based on differential forms to systematically explore the space of scalar-tensor theories of gravity. Within this formalism, we propose a basis for the scalar sector at the lowest order in derivatives of the field and in any number of dimensions. This minimal basis is used to construct a finite and closed set of Lagrangians describing general scalar-tensor theories invariant under Local Lorentz Transformations in a pseudo-Riemannian manifold, which contains ten physically distinct elements in four spacetime dimensions. Subsequently, we compute their corresponding equations of motion and find which combinations are at most second order in derivatives in four as well as arbitrary number of dimensions. By studying the possible exact forms (total derivatives) and algebraic relations between the basis components, we discover that there are only four Lagrangian combinations producing second order equations, which can be associated with Horndeski's theory. In this process, we identify a new second order Lagrangian, named kinetic Gauss-Bonnet, that was not previously considered in the literature. However, we show that its dynamics is already contained in Horndeski's theory. Finally, we provide a full classification of the relations between different second order theories. This allows us to clarify, for instance, the connection between different covariantizations of Galileons theory. In conclusion, our formulation affords great computational simplicity with a systematic structure. As a first step we focus on theories with second order equations of motion. However, this new formalism aims to facilitate advances towards unveiling the most general scalar-tensor theories.

Warped AdS3 black holes in higher derivative gravity theories

We consider warped AdS_3 black holes in generic higher derivatives gravity theories in 2+1 dimensions. The asymptotic symmetry group of the phase space containing these black holes is the semi-direct product of a centrally extended Virasoro algebra and an affine u(1) Kac-Moody algebra. Previous works have shown that in some specific theories, the entropy of these black holes agrees with a Cardy-like entropy formula derived for warped conformal field theories. In this paper, we show that this entropy matching continues to hold for the most general higher derivative theories of gravity. We also discuss the existence of phase transitions.

Erratum: Earth-moon Lagrangian points as a test bed for general relativity and effective field theories of gravity [Phys. Rev. D92, 064045 (2015)

Erratum: Earth-moon Lagrangian points as a test bed for general relativity and effective field theories of gravity [Phys. Rev. D<b>92</b>, 064045 (2015)

Spacetime Causal Structure and Dimension from Horismotic Relation

A reflexive relation on a set can be a starting point in defining the causal structure of a spacetime in General Relativity and other relativistic theories of gravity. If we identify this relation as the relation between lightlike separated events (the horismos relation), we can construct in a natural way the entire causal structure: causal and chronological relations, causal curves, and a topology. By imposing a simple additional condition, the structure gains a definite number of dimensions. This construction works with both continuous and discrete spacetimes. The dimensionality is obtained also in the discrete case, so this approach can be suited to prove the fundamental conjecture of causal sets. Other simple conditions lead to a differentiable manifold with a conformal structure (the metric up to a scaling factor) as in Lorentzian manifolds. This structure provides a simple and general reconstruction of the spacetime in relativistic theories of gravity, which normally requires topological structure, differential structure, and geometric structure (which decomposes in the conformal structure, giving the causal relations and the volume element). Motivations for such a reconstruction come from relativistic theories of gravity, where the conformal structure is important, from the problem of singularities, and from Quantum Gravity, where various discretization methods are pursued, particularly in the causal sets approach.

Generalized Einstein’s Equations from Wald Entropy

We derive the gravitational equations of motion of general theories of gravity from thermodynamics applied to a local Rindler horizon through any point in spacetime. Specifically, for a given theory of gravity, we substitute the corresponding Wald entropy into the Clausius relation. Our approach works for all diffeomorphism-invariant theories of gravity in which the Lagrangian is a polynomial in the Riemann tensor.

Disformally self-tuning gravity

We extend a previous self-tuning analysis of the most general scalar-tensor theory of gravity in four dimensions with second order field equations by considering a generalized coupling to the matter sector. Through allowing a disformal coupling to matter we are able to extend the Fab Four model and construct a new class of theories that are able to tune away the cosmological constant on Friedmann-Lemaitre-Robertson-Walker backgrounds.

Thermodynamics of general scalar-tensor theory with non-minimally derivative coupling

With the usual definitions for the entropy and the temperature associated with the apparent horizon, we discuss the first law of the thermodynamics on the apparent in the general scalar-tensor theory of gravity with the kinetic term of the scalar field non-minimally coupling to Einstein tensor. We show the equivalence between the first law of thermodynamics on the apparent horizon and Friedmann equation for the general models, by using a mass-like function which is equal to the Misner-Sharp mass on the apparent horizon. The results further support the universal relationship between the first law of thermodynamics and Friedmann equation.

Constraints on deviations from ΛCDM within Horndeski gravity

Recent anomalies found in cosmological datasets such as the low multipoles of the Cosmic Microwave Background or the low redshift amplitude and growth of clustering measured by e.g., abundance of galaxy clusters and redshift space distortions in galaxy surveys, have motivated explorations of models beyond standard ΛCDM. Of particular interest are models where general relativity (GR) is modified on large cosmological scales. Here we consider deviations from ΛCDM+GR within the context of Horndeski gravity, which is the most general theory of gravity with second derivatives in the equations of motion. We adopt a parametrization in which the four additional Horndeski functions of time αi(t) are proportional to the cosmological density of dark energy ΩDE(t). Constraints on this extended parameter space using a suite of state-of-the art cosmological observations are presented for the first time. Although the theory is able to accommodate the low multipoles of the Cosmic Microwave Background and the low amplitude of fluctuations from redshift space distortions, we find no significant tension with ΛCDM+GR when performing a global fit to recent cosmological data and thus there is no evidence against ΛCDM+GR from an analysis of the value of the Bayesian evidence ratio of the modified gravity models with respect to ΛCDM, despite introducing extra parameters. The posterior distribution of these extra parameters that we derive return strong constraints on any possible deviations from ΛCDM+GR in the context of Horndeski gravity. We illustrate how our results can be applied to a more general frameworks of modified gravity models.

Three theorems on near horizon extremal vanishing horizon geometries

EVH black holes are Extremal black holes with Vanishing Horizon area, where vanishing of horizon area is a result of having a vanishing one-cycle on the horizon. We prove three theorems regarding near horizon geometry of EVH black hole solutions to generic Einstein gravity theories in diverse dimensions. These generic gravity theories are Einstein–Maxwell-dilaton-Λ theories, and gauged or ungauged supergravity theories with U(1) Maxwell fields. Our three theorems are: (1) The near horizon geometry of any EVH black hole has a three dimensional maximally symmetric subspace. (2) If the energy momentum tensor of the theory satisfies strong energy condition either this 3d part is an AdS3, or the solution is a direct product of a locally 3d flat space and a d−3 dimensional part. (3) These results extend to the near horizon geometry of near-EVH black holes, for which the AdS3 part is replaced with BTZ geometry.

Hydrogen Burning in Low Mass Stars Constrains Scalar-Tensor Theories of Gravity.

The most general scalar-tensor theories of gravity predict a weakening of the gravitational force inside astrophysical bodies. There is a minimum mass for hydrogen burning in stars that is set by the interplay of plasma physics and the theory of gravity. We calculate this for alternative theories of gravity and find that it is always significantly larger than the general relativity prediction. The observation of several low mass red dwarf stars therefore rules out a large class of scalar-tensor gravity theories and places strong constraints on the cosmological parameters appearing in the effective field theory of dark energy.

Gravity waves in three dimensions

We find the explicit forms of the anti-de Sitter plane, anti-de Sitter spherical, and pp waves that solve both the linearized and exact field equations of the most general higher derivative gravity theory in three dimensions. As a sub-class, we work out the six derivative theory and the critical version of it where the masses of the two spin-2 excitations vanish and the spin-0 excitations decouple.

Near horizon structure of extremal vanishing horizon black holes

We study the near horizon structure of Extremal Vanishing Horizon (EVH) black holes, extremal black holes with vanishing horizon area with a vanishing one-cycle on the horizon. We construct the most general near horizon EVH and near-EVH ansatz for the metric and other fields, like dilaton and gauge fields which may be present in the theory. We prove that (1) the near horizon EVH geometry for generic gravity theory in generic dimension has a three dimensional maximally symmetric subspace; (2) if the matter fields of the theory satisfy strong energy condition either this 3d part is AdS3, or the solution is a direct product of a locally 3d flat space and a d−3 dimensional part; (3) these results extend to the near horizon geometry of near-EVH black holes, for which the AdS3 part is replaced with BTZ geometry. We present some specific near horizon EVH geometries in 3, 4 and 5 dimensions for which there is a classification. We also briefly discuss implications of these generic results for generic (gauged) supergravity theories and also for the thermodynamics of near-EVH black holes and the EVH/CFT proposal.

Earth-moon Lagrangian points as a test bed for general relativity and effective field theories of gravity

In the restricted four-body problem consisting of the Earth, the Moon and the Sun as the primaries and a spacecraft as the planetoid, we take into account the solar perturbation in the description of the motion of a spacecraft in the vicinity of the stable Earth-Moon libration points L4 and L5 both in the classical regime and in the context of effective field theories of gravity. We then evaluate the location of all Lagrangian points in the Earth-Moon system within the framework of general relativity. For the points L4 and L5, the corrections of coordinates are of order a few millimeters. After that, we set up a scheme where the theory which is quantum corrected has as its classical counterpart the Einstein theory, instead of the Newtonian one. By virtue of the effective-gravity correction to the longdistance form of the potential among two point masses, all terms involving the ratio between the gravitational radius of the primary and its separation from the planetoid get modified. Within this framework, for the Lagrangian points of stable equilibrium, we find quantum corrections of order two millimeters, whereas for Lagrangian points of unstable equilibrium we find quantum corrections below a millimeter. Finally, general relativity corrections to Newtonian position of collinear Lagrangian points turn out to be below the millimiter, whereas on stable equilibrium points they are of order of a few millimiters.

Parametrized post-Newtonian limit of Horndeski’s gravity theory

We discuss the parametrized post-Newtonian (PPN) limit of Horndeski's theory of gravity, also known under the name generalized G-inflation or ${\mathrm{G}}^{2}$-inflation, which is the most general scalar-tensor theory of gravity with at most second-order field equations in four dimensions. We derive conditions on the action for the validity of the post-Newtonian limit. For the most general class of theories consistent with these conditions we calculate the PPN parameters $\ensuremath{\gamma}(r)$ and $\ensuremath{\beta}(r)$, which in general depend on the interaction distance $r$ between the gravitating mass and the test mass. For a more restricted class of theories, in which the scalar field is massless, we calculate the full set of PPN parameters. It turns out that in this restricted case all parameters are constants and that the only parameters potentially deviating from observations are $\ensuremath{\gamma}$ and $\ensuremath{\beta}$. We finally apply our results to a number of example theories, including Galileons and different models of Higgs inflation.

The two faces of mimetic Horndeski gravity: disformal transformations and Lagrange multiplier

We show that very general scalar-tensor theories of gravity (including, e.g., Horndeski models) are generically invariant under disformal transformations. However there is a special subset, when the transformation is not invertible, that yields new equations of motion which are a generalization of the so-called “mimetic” dark matter theory recently introduced by Chamsedinne and Mukhanov. These conclusions hold true irrespective of whether the scalar field in the action of the assumed scalar-tensor theory of gravity is the same or different than the scalar field involved in the transformation. The new equations of motion for our general mimetic theory can also be derived from an action containing an additional Lagrange multiplier field. The general mimetic scalar-tensor theory has the same number of derivatives in the equations of motion as the original scalar-tensor theory. As an application we show that the simplest mimetic scalar-tensor model is able to mimic the cosmological background of a flat FLRW model with a barotropic perfect fluid with any constant equation of state.