We perform the Hamiltonian analysis of the bimetric theory of gravity introduced in [arXiv:1109.3515 [hep-th]]. We carefully analyze the requirement of the preservation of all constraints and we find that there is no additional constraint that could eliminate the ghost mode.
We consider the Hassan-Rosen bimetric field equations in vacuum when the two metrics share a single common null direction in a spherically symmetric configuration. By solving these equations, we obtain a class of exact solutions of the generalized Vaidya type parametrized by an arbitrary function. Besides not being asymptotically flat, the found solutions are nonstationary admitting only three global spacelike Killing vector fields which are the generators of spatial rotations. Hence, these are spherically symmetric bimetric vacuum solutions with the minimal number of isometries. The absence o…
We consider a particular set of ghost-free interactions for three spin-2 fields in which we freeze out the dynamics of the metric tensor that couples to the matter sector. Integrating out the non-dynamical degrees of freedom in vacuum results in a ghost-free bimetric theory. In the presence of the matter source, which we treat as a small perturbation, the equations for the non-dynamical field can be solved perturbatively for its vierbein. This results in ghost-free bimetric theory in vierbein formulation with a modified matter coupling. To lowest order in matter perturbations, we precisely obt…
The ghost-free bimetric theory describes interactions of gravity with another spin-2 field in terms of two Lorentzian metrics. However, if the two metrics do not admit compatible notions of space and time, the formulation of the initial value problem becomes problematic. Furthermore, the interaction potential is given in terms of the square root of a matrix which is in general nonunique and possibly nonreal. In this paper we prove that the reality of the square root matrix leads to a classification of the allowed metrics in terms of the intersections of their null cones. Then, the requirement …
We consider the parametrized post-Newtonian (PPN) limit of ghost-free massive bimetric gravity with two mutually non-interacting matter sectors coupled to the two metrics. Making use of a gauge-invariant differential decomposition of the metric perturbations, we solve the field equations up to the linear PPN order for a static, point-like mass source. From the result we derive the PPN parameter $γ$ for spherically symmetric systems, which describes the gravitational deflection of light by visible matter. By a comparison to its value measured in the solar system we obtain bounds on the paramete…
The goal of this work was to investigate the propagation of the constraints in the ghost-free bimetric theory where the evolution equations are in standard 3+1 form. It is established that the constraints evolve according to a first-order symmetric hyperbolic system whose characteristic cone consists of the null cones of the two metrics. Consequently, the constraint evolution equations are well-posed, and the constraints stably propagate.
We perform a canonical analysis of the bimetric theory in the metric formulation, computing the constraints and their algebra explicitly. In particular, we compute a secondary constraint, that has been argued to exist earlier, and show that it has the correct form to eliminate the ghost. We also identify a set of four first class constraints that generate the algebra of general covariance. The covariance algebra naturally determines a spacetime metric for the theory. However, in bimetric theory, this metric is not unique but depends on how the first class constraints are identified.
We discuss the linear perturbation equations with the synchronous gauge in a minimal scenario of the bimetric massive gravity theory. We find that the matter density perturbation and matter power spectrum are suppressed. We also examine the ghost and stability problems and show that the allowed deviation of this gravitational theory from the cosmological constant is constrained to be smaller than $\mathcal{O}(10^{-2})$ by the large scale structure observational data.
We derive the full perturbative equations of motion for the most general background solutions in ghost-free bimetric theory in its metric formulation. Clever field redefinitions at the level of fluctuations enable us to circumvent the problem of varying a square-root matrix appearing in the theory. This greatly simplifies the expressions for the linear variation of the bimetric interaction terms. We show that these field redefinitions exist and are uniquely invertible if and only if the variation of the square-root matrix itself has a unique solution, which is a requirement for the linearised …
In this paper we investigate a particular ghost-free bimetric theory that exhibits the partially massless (PM) symmetry at quadratic order. At this order the global SO(1,4) symmetry of the theory is enhanced to SO(1,5). We show that this global symmetry becomes inconsistent at cubic order, in agreement with a previous calculation. Furthermore, we find that the PM symmetry of this theory cannot be extended beyond cubic order in the PM field. More importantly, it is shown that the PM symmetry cannot be extended to quartic order in any theory with one massless and one massive spin-2 fields.
This review is dedicated to recent progress in the field of classical, interacting, massive spin-2 theories, with a focus on ghost-free bimetric theory. We will outline its history and its development as a nontrivial extension and generalisation of nonlinear massive gravity. We present a detailed discussion of the consistency proofs of both theories, before we review Einstein solutions to the bimetric equations of motion in vacuum as well as the resulting mass spectrum. We introduce couplings to matter and then discuss the general relativity and massive gravity limits of bimetric theory, which…
We give a basic introduction to ghost-free nonlinear theories involving massive spin-2 fields, focussing on bimetric theory. After motivating the construction of such models from field theoretical considerations, we review the linear theories for massive and massless spin-2 fluctuations propagating on maximally symmetric backgrounds. The structure of general nonlinear spin-2 interactions is explained before we specialise to the ghost-free case. We review the maximally symmetric solutions of bimetric theory, its mass spectrum and the parameter limit which brings the theory close to general rela…
Ghost-free bimetric gravity is a theory of two interacting spin-2 fields, one massless and one massive, in addition to the standard matter particles and fields, thereby generalizing Einstein's theory of general relativity. To parameterize the theory, we use five observables with specific physical interpretations. We present, for the first time, observational constraints on these parameters that: (i) apply to the full theory, (ii) are consistent with a working screening mechanism (i.e., restoring general relativity locally), (iii) exhibit a continuous, real-valued background cosmology (without …
Bimetric gravity is a ghost-free and observationally viable extension of general relativity, exhibiting both a massless and a massive graviton. The observed abundances of light elements can be used to constrain the expansion history of the Universe at the period of Big Bang nucleosynthesis. Applied to bimetric gravity, we readily obtain constraints on the theory parameters which are complementary to other observational probes. For example, the mixing angle between the two gravitons must satisfy $θ\lesssim 18^\circ$ in the graviton mass range $m_\mathrm{FP} \gtrsim 10^{-16} \, \mathrm{eV}/c^2$,…
We study spherically symmetric solutions in a four-parameter Einstein-Cartan-type class of theories. These theories include torsion, as well as the metric, as dynamical fields, and contain only two physical excitations (around flat spacetime): a massless spin-2 excitation and a massive spin-2 one (of mass $ m_2 \equiv κ$). They offer a geometric framework (which we propose to call "torsion bigravity") for a modification of Einstein's theory that has the same spectrum as bimetric gravity models. We find that the spherically symmetric solutions of torsion bigravity theories exhibit several remar…
Ghost-free bimetric gravity is an extension of general relativity, featuring a massive spin-2 field coupled to gravity. We parameterize the theory with a set of observables having specific physical interpretations. For the background cosmology and the static, spherically symmetric solutions (for example approximating the gravitational potential of the solar system), there are four directions in the parameter space in which general relativity is approached. Requiring that there is a working screening mechanism and a nonsingular evolution of the Universe, we place analytical constraints on the p…
We present the construction of a gravitational action including an infinite series of higher derivative terms. The outcome is a classically consistent completion of a well-studied quadratic curvature theory. The closed form for the full action is ghost-free bimetric theory, describing the interactions of a massive and a massless spin-2 field. At energies much smaller than the spin-2 mass scale, the theory reduces to general relativity. For energies comparable to the spin-2 mass, the higher derivative terms completing the Einstein-Hilbert action capture the effects of the additional massive spi…
Thus far, all known ghost-free interactions of multiple spin-2 fields have involved at most pairwise couplings of the fields, which are direct generalizations of bimetric interactions. Here we present a class of spin-2 theories with genuine multi-field interactions, and explicitly demonstrate the absence of ghost instabilities. The construction involves integrating out a nondynamical field in a theory of spin-2 fields with only pairwise ghost-free interactions. The new multi-vierbein interactions generated are not always expressible in terms of the associated metrics.
A crucial building block of the ghost free massive gravity is the square root function of a matrix. This is a problematic entity from the viewpoint of existence and uniqueness properties. We accurately describe the freedom of choosing a square root of a (non-degenerate) matrix. It has discrete and (in special cases) continuous parts. When continuous freedom is present, the usual perturbation theory in terms of matrices can be critically ill defined for some choices of the square root. We consider the new formulation of massive and bimetric gravity which deals directly with eigenvalues (in disg…
Observational evidence for the existence of Dark Matter is limited to its gravitational effects. The extensive program for dedicated searches has yielded null results so far, challenging the most popular models. Here we propose that this is the case because the very existence of cold Dark Matter is a manifestation of gravity itself. The consistent bimetric theory of gravity, the only known ghost-free extension of General Relativity involving a massless and a massive spin-2 field, automatically contains a perfect Dark Matter candidate. We demonstrate that the massive spin-2 particle can be heav…
We study the propagation of exact gravitational waves in the ghost-free bimetric theory. Our focus is on type N spacetimes compatible with the cosmological constants provided by the bigravity interaction potential, and particularly in the single class known by allowing at least a Killing symmetry: the AdS waves. They have the advantage of being represented by a generalized Kerr-Schild transformation from AdS spacetime. This means a notorious simplification in bigravity by allowing to straightforwardly compute any power of its interaction square root matrix, opening the door to explore physical…