In this paper, we investigate the cosmological consequences of ghost dark energy model in modified Gauss-Bonnet gravity. We construct ghost dark energy $f(G)$ model by using correspondence scenario for both interacting and non-interacting schemes. For this purpose, we consider the FRW universe with pressureless matter and power-law scale factor. We examine the behavior of the equation of state parameter and check the stability of ghost dark energy model through the squared speed of sound parameter. We also analyze the behavior of phase planes like $ω_{eff}-ω'_{eff}$ and $r-s$ graphically. It is found that the equation of state parameter represents the quintessence era for non-interacting while the phantom phase of the universe for an interacting case. The squared speed of sound indicates stable ghost dark energy model for both cases. The $ω_{eff}-ω'_{eff}$ plane shows thawing region for non-interacting while freezing region for an interacting case. The $r-s$ plane corresponds to the Chaplygin gas model in both scenarios. We conclude that ghost dark energy model describes the evolution of the universe for the appropriate choice of parameters.
We present the Hamiltonian formulation of the Ghost Free Mimetic Massive Gravity theory. The linearized theory is studied and the Hamiltonian equations of motion are analyzed. Poisson brackets are computed and closure is proved. To prove that this theory is ghost-free, the number of degrees of freedom is analyzed showing that we have only five degrees of freedom.
In this work we studied the higher order gravity model which corresponds to Hassan-Rosen ghost-free bi-gravity. To do this we absorb one of the metrics in bi-gravity model in favor of the other metric in a recursive way. For the second (recursion) step we get conformal gravity same as what has been done in the literature. We generalize this idea by calculating up to the fourth order gravity. To reach to a ghost-free higher order gravity we need to go to infinite-derivative order gravity but we can see our model as an effective theory. So adding higher order terms results in wider range of vali…
Ghost neutrinos in radiative Kerr spacetime endowed with totally skew-symmetric Cartan contortion is presented. The computations are made by using the Newman-Penrose (NP) calculus. The model discussed here maybe useful in several astrophysical applications specially in black hole astrophysics.
Subject of our study it is the accelerated expansion of the large scale universe, where a varying ghost dark energy can take the role of the dark energy. The model of the varying ghost dark energy considered in this work it is a phenomenological modification of the ghost dark energy. Recently, three other phenomenological models of the varying ghost dark energy have been suggested and the model considered in this work will complete the logical chain of considered modifications. The best fit of theoretical results to the luminosity distance, has been used to obtain preliminary constraints on th…
In this paper, we point out thermodynamical description of ghost dark energy and its generalization to the early universe. Thereinafter, we find expressions for the entropy changes of these dark energy candidates. In addition, considering thermal fluctuations, thermodynamics of the dark energy component interacting with a dark matter sector is addressed. {We will also find the effects of considering the coincidence problem on the mutual interaction between the dark sectors, and thus the equation of state parameter of dark energy.} Finally, we derive a relation between the mutual interaction of…
We investigate interacting ghost dark energy models in higher dimensional cosmology. We attempt to model dark matter within a barotropic fluid with $P_{b}=ω(t)_{b}ρ$. In this work we consider four different models based on choosing equation of state parameter and interaction term. We confirm that our models agree with observational data.
We investigate the generalized Quantum Chromodynamics (QCD) ghost model of dark energy in the framework of Einstein gravity. First, we study the non-interacting generalized ghost dark energy in a flat Friedmann-Robertson-Walker (FRW) background. We obtain the equation of state parameter, $w_D=p/ρ$, the deceleration parameter, and the evolution equation of the generalized ghost dark energy. We find that, in this case, $w_D$ cannot cross the phantom line ($w_D>-1$) and eventually the universe approaches a de-Sitter phase of expansion $(w_D\rightarrow-1)$. Then, we extend the study to the interac…
By interacting ghost dark energy (ghost DE) in the framework of Brans-Dicke theory, a spatially homogeneous and anisotropic Bianchi type I Universe has been studied. For this purpose, we use the squared sound speed $c_s^2$ whose sign determines the stability of the model. As well as we probe observational constraints on the ghost dark energy models as the unification of dark matter and dark energy by using the latest observational data. In order to do so, we focus on observational determinations of the Hubble expansion rate (namely, the expansion history) $H(z)$. After that we evaluate the evo…
In this paper we will study the spontaneous breakdown of the Lorentz symmetry by ghost condensation in perturbative quantum gravity. Our analysis will be done in the Curci-Ferrari gauge. We will also analyse modification of the BRST and the anti-BRST transformations by the formation of this ghost condensate. It will be shown that even though the modified BRST and the modified anti-BRST transformations are not nilpotent, their nilpotency is restored on-shell.
In this paper, we consider three different models of dark energy in higher dimensional space-time and discuss about some cosmological parameters numerically. The first model is a single component universe including viscous varying modified Chaplygin gas. In the second model, we consider two-component universe including viscous varying modified Chaplygin gas and ghost dark energy. In the third model, we consider another two-component universe including viscous modified cosmic Chaplygin gas and ghost dark energy. In the cases of two-component fluids we also consider possibility of interaction be…
Motivated by recent developments in Cosmology we would like to consider an extension of the Ghost DE which we will call as varying Ghost DE. Ghost DE like other models was introduced recently as a possible way to explain accelerated expansion of the Universe. For the phenomenological origin of the varying Ghost dark energy in our Universe we can suggest an existence of some unknown dynamics between the Ghost Dark energy and a fluid which evaporated completely making sense of the proposed effect. Moreover, we assume that this was in the epochs and scales which are unreachable by nowadays experi…
A new model of dark energy namely "ghost dark energy model" has recently been suggested to interpret the positive acceleration of cosmic expansion. The energy density of ghost dark energy is proportional to the hubble parameter. In this paper we perform the statefinder diagnostic tool for this model both in flat and non-flat universe. We discuss the dependency of the evolutionary trajectories in $s-r$ and $q-r$ planes on the interaction parameter between dark matter and dark energy as well as the spatial curvature parameter of the universe. Eventually, in the light of SNe+BAO+OHD+CMB observati…
Considering power-law for of scale factor in a flat FRW universe we reported a reconstruction scheme for $f(G)$ gravity based on QCD ghost dark energy. We reconstructed the effective equation of state parameter and observed "quintessence" behavior of the equation of state parameter. Furthermore, considering dynamical apparent horizon as the enveloping horizon of the universe we have observed that the generalized second law of thermodynamics is valid for this reconstructed $f(G)$ gravity.
It was argued that the vacuum energy of the Veneziano ghost field of QCD, in a time-dependent background, can be written in the general form, $H + O(H^2)$, where $H$ is the Hubble parameter. Based on this, a phenomenological dark energy model whose energy density is of the form $ρ=αH+βH^{2}$ was recently proposed to explain the dark energy dominated universe. In this paper, we investigate this generalized ghost dark energy model in the setup of Brans-Dicke cosmology. We study the cosmological implications of this model. In particular, we obtain the equation of state and the deceleration parame…
The present work reports a reconstruction scheme for f(T) gravity based on QCD ghost dark energy. Two models of f(T) have been generated and the pressure and density contributions due to torsion have been reconstructed. Two realistic models have been obtained and the effective equations of state have been studied. Also, the squared speed of sound has been studied to examine the stability of the models.
We study ghosts in multimetric gravity by combining the mini-superspace and the Hamiltonian constraint analysis. We first revisit bimetric gravity and explain why it is ghost-free. Then, we apply our method to trimetric gravity and clarify when the model contains a ghost. More precisely, we prove trimetric gravity generically contains a ghost. However, if we cut the interaction of a pair of metrics, trimetric gravity becomes ghost-free. We further extend the Hamiltonian analysis to general multimetric gravity and calculate the number of ghosts in various models. Thus, we find multimetric gravi…
The proposal of pilgrim dark energy is based on the speculation that phantom-like dark energy possesses enough resistive force to preclude the black hole formation in the later universe. We explore this phenomenon by assuming the generalized ghost version of pilgrim dark energy. We find that most of the values of the interacting ($ξ^2$) as well as pilgrim dark energy ($u$) parameters push the equation of state parameter towards phantom region. The squared speed of sound shows that this model remains stable in most of the cases of $ξ^2$ and $u$. We also develop $ω_Λ-ω'_Λ$ plane and observe that…
The Ostrogradski ghost problem that appears in higher derivative system is considered for systems with constraints. A prescription for removal of the ghost creating momenta is described based on the Dirac's constraint analysis. It is shown how one can make the canonical Hamiltonian bounded from below by systematically removing the constraints appearing in the system thereby reducing the effective dimension of the phase space. To show the effect of higher derivative terms we consider the singularity free Gauss-Bonnet theory coupled via a matter field to the Einstein Hilbert action. Finally we c…
We study the stability of the ghost dark energy model versus perturbation. Since this kind of dark energy is instable in Einsteinian general relativity theory, then we study a new type of Brans-Dicke theory which has non-minimal coupling with matter which is called chameleon Brans-Dicke (CBD) model of gravity. Due to this coupling the equation of conservation energy is modified. For considering the stability of the model we use the adiabatic squared sound speed, $c_s^2$, whose sign of it determines the stability of the model in which for $c_s^2 >0 $ the model is stable and for $c_s^2 <0 $ the …
Linearized four-derivative gravity with a general gauge fixing term is considered. By a Legendre transform and a suitable diagonalization procedure it is cast into a second-order equivalent form where the nature of the physical degrees of freedom, the gauge ghosts, the Weyl ghosts, and the intriguing "third ghosts", characteristic to higher-derivative theories, is made explicit. The symmetries of the theory and the structure of the compensating Faddeev-Popov ghost sector exhibit non-trivial peculiarities.
We present the ghost-free infinite-derivative extensions of the Spherically-Reduced Gravity (SRG) and Callan-Giddings-Harvey-Strominger (CGHS) theories in two space-time dimensions. For the case of SRG, we specify the Schwarzschild-type gauge and diagonalise the quadratic action for field perturbations after taking the background fields to be those of the flat-space solution with a linear dilaton. Using the obtained diagonalisation, we construct ghost-free infinite-derivative modifications of the SRG theory. In the context of this modified SRG theory we derive a non-local modification of the l…
This work is based on pilgrim dark energy conjecture which states that phantom-like dark energy possesses the enough resistive force to preclude the formation of black hole. The non-flat geometry is considered which contains the interacting generalized ghost pilgrim dark energy with cold dark matter. Some well-known cosmological parameters (evolution parameter ($ω_Λ$) and squared speed of sound) and planes ($ω_Λ$-$ω_Λ'$ and statefinder) are constructed in this scenario. The discussion of these parameters is totally done through pilgrim dark energy parameter ($u$) and interacting parameter ($d^…
In this paper we formulate RFDiff invariant f(R) Horava-Lifshitz gravity and we show that it is related to the ghost condensation in the projectable version of Horava-Lifshitz gravity.
We give a variational formulation of General Relativity, with coupling to a cosmological constant, to scalar fields, to vector fields and to spinor fields (all with possible mass and interaction terms). Among the matter fields, we include ghosts corresponding to diffeomorphism and Yang-Mills gauge symmetries, with kinetic terms given by gauge fixing conditions leading to hyperbolic equations of motion for all fields. The distinguishing characteristic of our Lagrangian density is its polynomiality, in all dynamical fields and Lagrange multipliers, and its validity for any number of spacetime di…
We study the phase space asymptotics of the so called Veneziano ghost dark energy models. Models where the ghost field's energy density: i) $ρ_{ghost}\propto H$, and ii) $ρ_{ghost}\propto H+H^2$, are investigated. Both, cases with and without additional non-gravitational interaction between cold dark matter and ghost dark energy, are subject to scrutiny. We pay special attention to the choice of phase space variables leading to bounded and compact phase space so that no critical point of physical interest is missing. A rich asymptotic structure is revealed: depending on the kind of non-minimal…
We consider Higgs massive gravity [1,2] and investigate whether a nonlinear ghost in this theory can be avoided. We show that although the theory considered in [10,11] is ghost free in the decoupling limit, the ghost nevertheless reappears in the fourth order away from the decoupling limit. We also demonstrate that there is no direct relation between the value of the Vainshtein scale and the existence of nonlinear ghost. We discuss how massive gravity should be modified to avoid the appearance of the ghost.
We study the gravitational field of static p-branes in D-dimensional Minkowski space in the framework of linearized ghost-free (GF) gravity. The concrete models of GF gravity we consider are parametrized by the non-local form factors $\exp(-\Box/μ^2)$ and $\exp(\Box^2/μ^4)$, where $μ^{-1}$ is the scale of non-locality. We show that the singular behavior of the gravitational field of p-branes in General Relativity is cured by short-range modifications introduced by the non-localities, and we derive exact expressions of the regularized gravitational fields, whose geometry can be written as a war…
We study the gravitational field of ultrarelativistic spinning objects (gyratons) in a modified gravity theory with higher derivatives. In particular, we focus on a special class of such theories with an infinite number of derivatives known as "ghost-free gravity" that include a non-local form factor such as $\exp(-\Box\ell^2)$, where $\ell$ is the scale of non-locality. First, we obtain solutions of the linearized ghost-free equations for stationary spinning objects. To obtain gyraton solutions we boost these metrics and take their Penrose limit. This approach allows us to perform calculation…
We consider a recently proposed non-minimal matter coupling in massive gravity and multi-gravity. We argue that, when formulated in terms of unconstrained vielbeins, this matter coupling contains the primary constraints necessary to remove the Boulware-Deser ghost to all orders away from the decoupling limit.
An auxiliary metric (reference metric) is inevitable in massive gravity theory. In the scenario of gauge/gravity duality, a singular reference metric corresponds to momentum dissipations, which describes the electric and heat conductivity for normal conductors. We demonstrate in detail that the massive gravity with singular reference metric is ghost-free.
A so called "ghost dark energy" was recently proposed to explain the present acceleration of the universe expansion. The energy density of ghost dark energy, which originates from Veneziano ghost of QCD, is proportional to the Hubble parameter, $ρ_D=αH$, where $α$ is a constant which is related to the QCD mass scale. In this paper, we establish the correspondence between ghost dark energy and quintessence scalar field energy density. This connection allows us to reconstruct the potential and the dynamics of the quintessence scalar field according to the evolution of ghost energy density.
In this work, we reconstruct the $f(R)$ modified gravity for different ghost and generalized ghost dark energy models in FRW flat universe, which describe the accelerated expansion of the universe. The equation of state of reconstructed $f(R)$ - gravity has been calculated. We show that the corresponding $f(R)$ gravity of ghost dark energy model can behave like phantom or quintessence. We also show that the equation of state of reconstructed $f(R)$ gravity for generalized ghost model can transit from quintessence regime to the phantom regime as indicated by recent observations.
We study the Faddeev-Popov ghost sector of asymptotically safe quantum gravity, which becomes non-perturbative in the ultraviolet. We point out that nonzero matter-ghost couplings and higher-order ghost self-interactions exist at a non-Gaussian fixed point for the gravitational couplings, i.e., in the ultraviolet. Thus the ghost sector in this non-perturbative ultraviolet completion does not keep the structure of a simple Faddeev-Popov determinant. We discuss implications of the new ghost couplings for the Renormalization Group flow in gravity, the form of the ultraviolet completion, and the r…
The S-matrix in quantum Yang-Mills gravity with translation gauge symmetry in flat space-time is investigated. We obtain the generating functional of Green's functions, i.e., the vacuum-to-vacuum amplitude, for Yang-Mills gravity. The unitarity and gauge invariance of the S-matrix in a class of gauge conditions is preserved by massless ghost vector fields.
We investigate the correspondence between the ghost and Chaplygin scalar field dark energy models in the framework of Einstein gravity. We consider a spatially non-flat FRW universe containing the interacting dark energy with dark matter. We reconstruct the potential and the dynamics for the Chaplygin scalar field model according to the evolutionary behavior of the ghost dark energy which can describe the phantomic accelerated expansion of the universe.
Recently it has been argued that a possible source for the dark energy may arise due to the contribution to the vacuum energy of the QCD ghost in a time-dependent background. In this paper we establish a connection between interacting ghost dark energy and tachyon field. It is demonstrated that the evolution of the ghost dark energy dominated universe can be described completely by a single tachyon scalar field. The potential and the dynamics of the tachyon field are reconstructed according to the evolutionary behavior of ghost energy density.
We investigate the problems of ghosts and stability in the framework of asymptotical safe theory of gravity in the Minkowski background. Within one loop corrections, we obtain explicitly the constraints on the coupling parameters. Applying them to the coupling constant recently-obtained at the fixed point, we find that the corresponding theory is both ghost-free and stable. Our results can be easily generalized to high order corrections.
Form factors constitute the key building block when organising the gravitational dynamics in terms of a curvature expansion. They generalise the concept of momentum-dependent couplings to curved spacetime. Moreover, they may capture modifications of the gravitational interactions at high energy scales in a non-perturbative way. We briefly review the role of form factors in various quantum gravity programmes with special emphasis on non-local, ghost-free gravity and asymptotically safe gravity. In this context, we introduce a quantum gravity motivated scalar toy model, which demonstrates that L…
We show that generalized gravity theories involving the curvature invariants of the Ricci tensor and the Riemann tensor as well as the Ricci scalar are equivalent to multi- scalar-tensor gravities with four derivatives terms. By expanding the action around a vacuum spacetime, the action is reduced to that of the Einstein gravity with four derivative terms, and consequently there appears a massive spin-2 ghost in such generalized gravity theories in addition to a massive spin-0 field.
We discuss the no-ghost theorem in the massive gravity in a covariant manner. Using the BRST formalism and Stückelberg fields, we first clarify how the Boulware-Deser ghost decouples in the massive gravity theory with Fierz-Pauli mass term. Here we find that the crucial point in the proof is that there is no higher (time) derivative for the Stückelberg `scalar' field. We then analyze the nonlinear massive gravity proposed by de Rham, Gabadadze and Tolley, and show that there is no ghost for general admissible backgrounds. In this process, we find a very nontrivial decoupling limit for general …
We investigate the instability of the ghost dark energy model against perturbations in different cases. To this goal we use the squared sound speed $v_s^2$ whose sign determines the stability of the model. When $v_s^2<0$ the model is unstable against perturbation. At first we discuss the noninteracting ghost dark energy model in a flat FRW universe and find out that such a model is unstable due to the negativity of the $v_s^2$ in all epoches. The interacting ghost dark energy model in both flat and non-flat universe are studied in the next parts and in both cases we find that the squared sound…
Massive Gravity in four dimensions has been shown to be free of the Boulware-Deser (BD) ghost in the ADM language for a specific choice of mass terms. We show here how this is consistent with the Stückelberg language beyond the decoupling limit, and how the constraint required to remove the BD ghost arises in this framework nonperturbatively, without the use of field redefinitions. We emphasize a subtlety in obtaining this constraint, that has been overlooked in previous literature. In both the ADM and Stückelberg formalisms the vanishing of the determinant of a Hessian guarantees the absence …
In this manuscript we will present the theoretical framework of the recently proposed infinite derivative theory of gravity with a non-symmetric connection. We will explicitly derive the field equations at the linear level and obtain new solutions with a non-trivial form of the torsion tensor in the presence of a fermionic source, and show that these solutions are both ghost and singularity-free.
We propose new version of massive $F(R)$ gravity which is natural generalization of convenient massive ghost-free gravity. Its Hamiltonian formulation in scalar-tensor frame is developed. We show that such $F(R)$ theory is ghost-free. The cosmological evolution of such theory is investigated. Despite the strong Bianchi identity constraint the possibility of cosmic acceleration (especially, in the presence of cold dark matter) is established. Ghost-free massive $F(R,T)$ gravity is also proposed.
In this work we shall address the ghost issue of $F\left( R,\mathcal{G} \right)$ gravity, which is known to be plagued with ghost degrees of freedom. These ghosts occur due to the presence of higher than two derivatives in the field equations, and can arise even when considering cosmological perturbations, where superluminal modes may arise in the theory. If we consider the quantum theory, the ghosts generate the negative norm states, which give the negative probabilities, and therefore the ghosts are physically inconsistent. Motivated by the importance of $F\left( R,\mathcal{G} \right)$ gravi…
We discuss aspects of non-perturbative unitarity in quantum field theory. The additional ghost degrees of freedom arising in "truncations" of an effective action at a finite order in derivatives could be fictitious degrees of freedom. Their contributions to the fully-dressed propagator -- the residues of the corresponding ghost-like poles -- vanish once all operators compatible with the symmetry of the theory are included in the effective action. These "fake ghosts" do not indicate a violation of unitarity.
We study a spherical gravitational collapse of a small mass in higher derivative and ghost free theories of gravity. By boosting a solution of linearized equations for a static point mass in such theories we obtain in the Penrose limit the gravitational field of an ultra-relativistic particle. Taking a superposition of such solutions we construct a metric of a collapsing null shell in the linearized higher derivative and ghost free gravity. The latter allows one to find the gravitational field of a thick null shell. By analysing these solutions we demonstrate that in a wide class of the higher…
It is possible to couple Dirac-Born-Infeld (DBI) scalars possessing generalized Galilean internal shift symmetries (Galileons) to nonlinear massive gravity in four dimensions, in such a manner that the interactions maintain the Galilean symmetry. Such a construction is of interest because it is not possible to couple such fields to massless General Relativity in the same way. We show that this theory has the primary constraint necessary to eliminate the Boulware-Deser ghost, thus preserving the attractive properties of both the Galileons and ghost-free massive gravity.
In this work we develop a theoretical framework for Gauss-Bonnet modified gravity theories, in which ghost modes can be eliminated at the equations of motion level. Particularly, after we present how the ghosts can occur at the level of equations of motion, we employ the Lagrange multipliers technique, and by means of constraints we are able to eliminate the ghost modes from Gauss-Bonnet theories of the form $f(\mathcal{G})$ and $F(R,\mathcal{G})$ types. Some cosmological realizations in the context of the ghost free $f(\mathcal{G})$ gravity are presented, by using the reconstruction technique…
A ghost dark energy model has been recently put forward to explain the current accelerated expansion of the Universe. In this model, the energy density of ghost dark energy, which comes from the Veneziano ghost of QCD, is proportional to the Hubble parameter, $ρ_D=αH$. Here $α$ is a constant of order $Λ^3_{QCD}$ where $Λ_{QCD}\sim 100 MeV$ is the QCD mass scale. We consider a connection between ghost dark energy with/without interaction between the components of the dark sector and the kinetic k-essence field. It is shown that the cosmological evolution of the ghost dark energy dominated Unive…
This paper presents a new higher derivative gravity which in spontaneous breaking electroweak symmetry state does not have ghost in gravity sector. We show that Newton constant of the gravity and dark energy density they depend on the fundamental TeV scale and the coupling constant at the quadratic curvature term. We consider the supersymmetric extension of this model.
We disprove the widespread belief that higher order curvature theories of gravity in the metric-affine formalism are generally ghost-free. This is clarified by considering a sub-class of theories constructed only with the Ricci tensor and showing that the non-projectively invariant sector propagates ghost-like degrees of freedom. We also explain how these pathologies can be avoided either by imposing a projective symmetry or additional constraints in the gravity sector. Our results put forward that higher order curvature gravity theories generally remain pathological in the metric-affine (and …
In this paper we show that there is a universal prediction for the Newtonian potential for an infinite derivative, ghost-free, quadratic curvature gravity. We show that in order to make such a theory ghost-free at a perturbative level, the Newtonian potential always falls-off as 1/r in the infrared limit, while at short distances the potential becomes non-singular. We provide examples which can potentially test the scale of gravitational non-locality up to 0.004 eV.
We compute the ghost anomalous dimension within the asymptotic-safety scenario for quantum gravity. For a class of covariant gauge fixings and using a functional RG scheme, the anomalous dimension $η_c$ is negative, implying an improved UV behavior of ghost fluctuations. At the non-Gaussian UV fixed point, we observe a maximum value of $η_c\simeq -0.78$ for the Landau-deWitt gauge within the given scheme and truncation. Most importantly, the backreaction of the ghost flow onto the Einstein-Hilbert sector preserves the non-Gaussian fixed point with only mild modifications of the fixed-point val…
We suggest and briefly review a new sort of superrenormalizable models of higher derivative quantum gravity. The higher derivative terms in the action can be introduced in such a way that all the unphysical massive states have complex poles. According to the literature on Lee-Wick quantization, in this case the theory can be formulated as unitary, since all massive ghosts-like degrees of freedom are unstable.
We consider the asymptotic-safety scenario for quantum gravity which constructs a non-perturbatively renormalisable quantum gravity theory with the help of the functional renormalisation group. We verify the existence of a non-Gaussian fixed point and include a running curvature-ghost coupling as a first step towards the flow of the ghost sector of the theory. We find that the scalar curvature-ghost coupling is asymptotically free and RG relevant in the ultraviolet. Most importantly, the property of asymptotic safety discovered so far within the Einstein-Hilbert truncation and beyond remains s…
