Scalar tensor theories of gravity can be formulated in the Einstein or in the Jordan frame, which are related by the conformal transformations. Although the two frames are describe the same physics, and are equivalent, the stability of the field equations in two frames are not the same. Here we implement dynamical system and phase space approach as a robustness tool to investigate this issue. We concentrate on the Brans Dicke theory, but the results can easily be generalized. Our analysis show that while there is one-to-one correspondence between critical points in two frames and each critical point in one frame is mapped to its corresponds in other frame , however stability of a critical points in one frame does not grantee the stability in other frame. Hence an unstable point in one frame may be mapped to a stable point in other frame. All trajectories between two critical points in phase space in one frame are different from their corresponds in other ones. This indicates that the dynamical behavior of variables and cosmological parameters are different in two frames. Hence for those features of the study which focus on observational measurements we must use the (JF) where experimental data have their usual interpretation
The present work shows that the mathematical equivalence of Jordan frame and its conformally transformed version, the Einstein frame, so far as Brans-Dicke theory is concerned, survives a quantization of cosmological models in the theory. We work with the Wheeler-deWitt quantization scheme and take up quite a few anisotropic cosmological models as examples. We effectively show that the transformation from Jordan to Einstein frame is a canonical one and hence two frames are equivalent description of same physical scenario.
It is shown that the Jordan frame and its conformally transformed version, the Einstein frame of nonminimally coupled theories of gravity, are actually equivalent at the quantum level. The example of the theory taken up is the Brans-Dicke theory, and the wave packet calculations are done for a homogeneous and isotropic cosmological model in the purest form of the theory, i.e., in the absence of any additional matter sector. The calculations are clean and exact, and the result obtained are unambiguous.
We investigate the dynamics of $f(R)$ gravity in Jordan and Einstein frames. First, we perform a phase-space singularities analysis in both frames. We show that, typically, anisotropic singularities are absent in the Einstein frame, whereas they may appear in the Jordan frame. We conciliate this apparent inconsistency by showing that the necessary conditions for the existence of the Einstein frame are namely the same ones assuring the absence of the anisotropic singularities in the Jordan frame. In other words, we show that, at least in the context of Bianchi I cosmologies, the Einstein frame …
It is well known that, in contrast to general relativity, there are two conformally related frames, the Jordan frame and the Einstein frame, in which the Brans-Dicke theory, a prototype of generic scalar-tensor theory, can be formulated. There is a long standing debate on the physical equivalence of the formulations in these two different frames. It is shown here that gravitational deflection of light to second order accuracy may observationally distinguish the two versions of the Brans-Dicke theory.
We study capability of $f(R)$ gravity models to allow crossing the phantom boundary in both Jordan and Einstein conformal frames. In Einstein frame, these models are equivalent to Einstein gravity together with a scalar field minimally coupled to gravity. This scalar degree of freedom appears as a quintessence field with a coupling with the matter sector. We investigate evolution of the equation of sate parameter for some cosmologically viable $f(R)$ gravity models in both conformal frames. This investigation (beyond mere theoretical arguments) acts as an operational tool to distinguish physic…
We examine the possibility of static wormhole solutions in the vacuum Brans-Dicke theory both in the original (Jordan) frame and in the conformally rescaled (Einstein) frame. It turns out that, in the former frame, wormholes exist only in a very narrow interval of the coupling parameter, viz., -3/2<omega<-4/3. It is shown that these wormholes are not traversable in practice. In the latter frame, wormhole solutions do not exist at all unless energy conditions are violated by hand.
We construct a dark energy model where a scalar field non-minimally coupled to gravity plays the role of the dark component. We compare cosmological consequences of this non-minimal coupling of the scalar field and gravity in the spirit of the dark energy paradigm in Jordan and Einstein frames. Some important issues such as phantom divide line crossing, existence of the bouncing solutions and the stability of the solutions are compared in these two frames. We show that while a non-minimally coupled scalar field in the Jordan frame is a suitable dark energy component with capability to realize …
The conformal equivalence between Jordan frame and Einstein frame can be used in order to search for exact solutions in general theories of gravity in which scalar fields are minimally or nonminimally coupled with geometry. In the cosmological arena a relevant role is played by the time parameter in which dynamics is described. In this paper we discuss such issues considering also if cosmological Noether symmetries in the ``point--like'' Lagrangian are conformally preserved. Through this analysis and through also a careful analysis of the cosmological parameters Ωand Λ, it is possible to contr…
Vacuum Brans-Dicke theory can be self-consistently described in two frames, the Jordan frame (JF) and the conformally rescaled Einstein frame (EF), the transformations providing an easy passage from one frame to the other at the level of actions and solutions. Despite this, the conformal frames are inequivalent describing different geometries. It is shown that the predictions of the weak field lensing (WFL) observables in the EF are different from those recently obtained in the JF for the vacuum Brans-Dicke class 1 solution. The value of the Brans-Dicke coupling parameter $ω$ from the Cassini …
This paper is devoted to the analysis of the covariant canonical formalism of $F(R)$ gravity in Einstein frame. We also find canonical transformation between covariant canonical formulation of F(R) gravity in Jordan frame and Einstein frames and we also determine corresponding generating function.
Three new classes (II-IV) of solutions of the vacuum low energy effective string theory in four dimensions are derived. Wormhole solutions are investigated in those solutions including the class I case both in the Einstein and in the Jordan (string) frame. It turns out that, of the eight classes of solutions investigated (four in the Einstein frame and four in the corresponding string frame), massive Lorentzian traversable wormholes exist in five classes. Nontrivial massless limit exists only in class I Einstein frame solution while none at all exists in the string frame. An investigation of t…
In this work, we present a complete analysis of the quantisation of the classical Brans-Dicke Theory using the method of affine quantisation in the Hamiltonian description of the theory. The affine quantisation method is based on the symmetry of the phase-space of the system, in this case the (positive) half-plane, that is identified with the affine group. We consider a FLRW-type spacetime, and since the scale factor is always positive, the affine method seems to be more suited than the canonincal quantisation for our Quantum Cosmology. We find the wave function of the Brans-Dicke universe, an…
The potential realization of a gravitational wave (GW) astronomy in next years is a great challenge for the scientific community. By giving a significant amount of new information, GWs will be a cornerstone for a better understanding of the universe and of the gravitational physics. In this paper the author shows that the GW astronomy will permit to solve a captivating issue of gravitation as it will be the definitive test for the famous "Einstein frame versus Jordan frame" controversy. In fact, we show that the motion of the test masses, i.e. the beam splitter and the mirror in the case of an…
With an explicit example, we show that Jordan frame and the conformally transformed Einstein frames clearly lead to different physics for a non-minimally coupled theory of gravity, namely Brans-Dicke theory, at least at the quantum level. The example taken up is the spatially flat Friedmann cosmology in Brans-Dicke theory.
In this note we consider the issue of the classical equivalence of scale-invariant gravity in the Einstein and in the Jordan frames. We first consider the simplest example $f(R)=R^{2}$ and show explicitly that the equivalence breaks down when dealing with Ricci-flat solutions. We discuss the link with the fact that flat solutions in quadratic gravity have zero energy. We also consider the case of scale-invariant tensor-scalar gravity and general $f(R)$ theories. We argue that all scale-invariant gravity models have Ricci flat solutions in the Jordan frame that cannot be mapped into the Einstei…
We investigate the classical stability of Schwarzschild black hole in Jordan and Einstein frames which are related by the conformal transformations. For this purpose, we introduce two models of the Brans-Dicke theory and Brans-Dicke-Weyl gravity in Jordan frame and two corresponding models in the Einstein frame. The former model is suitable for studying the massless spin-2 graviton propagating around the Schwarzschild black hole, while the later is designed for the massive spin-2 graviton propagating around the black hole. It turns out that the black hole (in)stability is independent of the fr…
We show, considering a specific f(R)-gravity model, that the Jordan frame and the Einstein frame are physically non-equivalent, although they are connected by a conformal transformation which yields a mathematical equivalence. Since all the calculations are performed analytically, this non-equivalence is shown in an unambiguous way.
Jordan and Einstein frame are studied under the light of Hamiltonian formalism. Dirac's constraint theory for Hamiltonian systems is applied to Brans-Dicke theory in the Jordan Frame. In both Jordan and Einstein frame, Brans-Dicke theory has four secondary first class constraints and their constraint algebra is closed. We show, contrary to what is generally believed, the Weyl (conformal) transformation, between the two frames, is not a canonical transformation, in the sense of Hamiltonian formalism. This addresses quantum mechanical inequivalence as well. A canonical transformation is shown.
The Hamiltonian of any quantum cosmological model must obey some conditions in order to be self-adjoint, or to admit self-adjoint extensions. We will consider in this paper the self-adjoint character of the Hamiltonian resulting from the Brans-Dicke theory, both in Einstein and Jordan frames. In both cases we find the wave-function solutions in order to obtain concrete predictions for the evolution of the Universe. We show that the specific cosmological scenarios obtained depend very weakly on the conditions of having a self-adjoint operator. The problem of equivalence between Einstein and Jor…
We study integrable models in the Bianchi I metric case with scalar fields minimally and non-minimally coupled with gravity and the correspondence between their general solutions. Using the model with a minimally coupled scalar field and a constant potential as an example, we demonstrate how to obtain the general solutions of the corresponding models in the Jordan frame.
Even though we know that physical observations are frame independent, the frame dependence of cosmological perturbations is relatively subtle and has led to confusion in the past. In this paper we show that while the (unobservable) matter power spectrum is frame dependent, the observable number counts are not. We shall also determine how the frame dependence of the power spectrum depends on scale.
We investigate how inflationary predictions are affected by the difference in the number of $e$-folds between the Jordan and Einstein frames. We study several test models in relation to a Jordan frame defined by the common Higgs-inflation-like non-minimal coupling to gravity and consider two different formulations of gravity: metric and Palatini. We find that the difference is quite contained in case of a metric Jordan frame while can be quite remarkable in case of a Palatini Jordan frame. We also discuss a way to overcome the discrepancy by introducing a frame invariant physical distance and …
In this work we shall study a new class of attractor models which we shall call generalized $R^p$-attractor models. This class of models is based on a generalization of the Einstein frame potential of $R^p$ $f(R)$ gravity models in the Jordan frame. We present the attractor properties of the corresponding non-minimally coupled Jordan frame theory, and we calculate the observational indices of inflation in the Einstein frame. As we show, there is a large class of non-minimally coupled scalar theories, with an arbitrary non-minimal coupling which satisfies certain conditions, that yield the same…
We study the Jordan frame formulation of generalizations of scalar-tensor theories conceived by replacing the scalar with other fields such as vectors. The generic theory in this family contains higher order time derivative terms in the Jordan frame action which is indicative of ill-posedness. However, we show that equations of motion can always be reduced to a second-order-in-time form as long as the original Einstein frame formulation is well posed. The inverse transformation from the Jordan frame back to the Einstein frame is not possible for all field values in all theories, but we obtain …
This thesis investigates a toy model for inflation in a class of modified theories of gravity in the metric formalism. Instead of the standard procedure -- assuming a non-linear Lagrangian $f(R)$ in the Jordan frame -- we start from a simple ϕ^2 potential in the Einstein frame and investigate the corresponding $f(R)$ in the former picture. Such approach yields plenty of new pieces of information, namely a self-terminating inflationary solution with a linear Lagrangian, a robust criterion for stability of such theories, a dynamical effective potential for the Ricci scalar $R$, the addition of a…
It is well known that the Jordan and Einstein frames are equivalent to each other in classical Brans-Dicke theory, provided that one and the same metric is employed for the physical space-time. Nevertheless, it is shown in this paper by cosmological models that the loop quantisation in the two different frames will lead to inequivalent effective theories. Analytical solutions have been found in both frames for the effective loop quantum Brans-Dicke cosmology without potential in: (i) vacuum case, (ii) additional massless scalar field case. In Einstein frame the analytical solution for the Bran…
We discuss the conformal symmetry between Jordan and Einstein frames considering their relations with the metric and Palatini formalisms for modified gravity. Appropriate conformal transformations are taken into account leading to the evident connection between the gravitational actions in the two mentioned frames and the Hilbert-Einstein action with a cosmological constant. We show that the apparent differences between Palatini and metric formalisms strictly depend on the representation while the number of degrees of freedom is preserved. This means that the dynamical content of both formalis…
A no-hair theorem for spherical black holes in scalar-tensor gravity is presented. Contrary to the existing theorems, which are proved in the Einstein conformal frame, this proof is performed entirely in the Jordan frame. The theorem is limited to spherical symmetry (instead of axisymmetry) but holds for non-constant Brans-Dicke couplings.
The $f(R)$ gravity and scalar-tensor theory are known to be equivalent at the classical level. We study if this equivalence is valid at the quantum level. There are two descriptions of the scalar-tensor theory in the Jordan and Einstein frames. It is shown that these three formulations of the theories give the same determinant or effective action on shell, and thus they are equivalent at the quantum one-loop level on shell in arbitrary dimensions. We also compute the one-loop divergence in $f(R)$ gravity.
We consider the correspondence between the Jordan frame and the Einstein frame descriptions of scalar-tensor theory of gravitation. We argue that since the redefinition of the scalar field is not differentiable at the limit of general relativity the correspondence between the two frames is lost at this limit. To clarify the situation we analyse the dynamics of the scalar field in different frames for two distinct scalar-tensor cosmologies with specific coupling functions and demonstrate that the corresponding scalar field phase portraits are not equivalent for regions containing the general re…
Non-minimal scalar-tensor (ST) theories may admit an Einstein frame representation, where gravity is described by the Einstein-Hilbert action plus the scalar sector. Some STs become just {\em minimal} Einstein-scalar (MES) theories, notable examples are Brans-Dicke and $Rϕ^2$. ST theories with {\em derivative} coupling can also be reduced to an Einstein frame by disformal transformations, but, as a rule, their scalar sector will contain higher derivative terms. Here we draw attention to a new Palatini kinetically coupled theory which can be reduced to pure MES by an invertible disformal transf…
We study the thermodynamical aspects of $f(R)$ gravity in the Jordan and the Einstein frame, and we investigate the corresponding equivalence of the thermodynamical quantities in the two frames. We examine static spherically symmetric black hole solutions with constant Ricci scalar curvature $R$, and as we demonstrate, the thermodynamical quantities in the two frames are equivalent. However, for the case of black holes with non-constant scalar curvature $R$, the thermodynamical equivalence of the two frames is no longer valid. In addition, we examine cosmological solutions with non-trivial cur…
We study the relation between the Jordan-Einstein frame transition and the possible description of the crossing of singularities in flat Friedmann universes, using the fact that the regular evolution in one frame can correspond to crossing singularities in the other frame. We show that some interesting effects arise in simple models such as one with a massless scalar field or another wherein the potential is constant in the Einstein frame. The dynamics in these models and in their conformally coupled counterparts are described in detail, and a method for the continuation of such cosmological e…
We study the scalar-tensor theory of gravity profoundly in the action level as well as in the thermodynamic level. Contrary to the usual description in the literature about the equivalence in the two conformally connected frames, this paper addresses several incomplete inferences regarding it and mentions some inequivalences which were not pointed out earlier. In the thermodynamic level, our analysis shows the two frames are equivalent. In that process, we identify the entropy, the energy and the temperature for the thermodynamic description, and we find these quantities are conformally invari…
The paper deals with cosmic no hair conjecture in scalar tensor theory of gravity. Here we have considered both Jordan frame and Einstein frame to examine the conjecture. In Jordan frame, one should restrict both the coupling function of the scalar field and the coupling parameter in addition to the ususal energy conditions for the the matter field for the validity of CNHC while in Einstein frame the restrictions are purely on the energy conditions.
Palatini variation of Jordan frame lagrangians gives an equation relating the dilaton to the object of non-metricity and hence the existence of the dilaton implies that the spacetime connection is more general than that given soley by the Christoffel symbol of general relativity. Transferring from Jordan to Einstein frame, which connection, lagrangian, field equations and stress conservation equations occur are discussed: it is found that the Jordan frame has more information, this can be expressed in several ways, the simplest is that the extra information corresponds to the function multiply…
We study the finite time singularity correspondence between the Jordan and Einstein frames for various $F(R)$ gravity theories. Particularly we investigate the ordinary pure $F(R)$ gravity case and the unimodular $F(R)$ gravity cases, in the absence of any matter fluids. In the ordinary $F(R)$ gravity cases, by using specific illustrative examples, we show that it is possible to have various correspondences of finite time singularities, and in some cases it is possible a singular cosmology in one frame might be non-singular in the other frame. In the unimodular $F(R)$ gravity case, the unimodu…
Distinguishing conformally coupled frames from the tree-level perturbative observables (scalar spectral index $n_{\rm s}$ and tensor-to-scalar ratio $r$) is challenging in cosmology as they are nearly identical. However, since the background evolution in these two frames differs significantly, we can look for potential signatures in the reheating constraints to discriminate these frames. In this work, we study the reheating phase in these frames and find that the difference in the inflationary energy scales in these frames contributes to a significant difference in the reheating e-folding numb…
We revisit the thermodynamic aspects of the scalar-tensor theory of gravity in the Jordan and in the Einstein frame. Examining the {\it missing links} of this theory carefully, we establish the thermodynamic descriptions from the conserved currents and potentials by following both the Noether and the Abbott-Deser-Tekin (ADT) formalism. With the help of conserved Noether current and potential, we define the thermodynamic quantities, which we show to be {\it conformally invariant}. Moreover, the defined quantities are shown to fit nicely in the laws of (the first and the second) black hole therm…
Different models in cosmology generally predict different Hubble diagrams. Then, the comparison between the Hubble diagrams may be used as a way for distinguishing between different cosmological scenarios. But that is not always the case because there is no guarantee that two different models always have different Hubble diagrams. It may be possible for two physically-inequivalent models to have the same Hubble diagrams. In that case, the Hubble diagram cannot be used to differentiate between two models and it is necessary to find another way to distinguish between them. Therefore, the questio…
We show how to map gravitational theories formulated in the Jordan frame to the Einstein frame at the quantum field theoretical level considering quantum fields in curved space-time. As an example, we consider gravitational theories in the Jordan frame of the type $F(ϕ,\, R)=f(ϕ)\, R-V(ϕ)$ and perform the map to the Einstein frame. Our results can easily be extended to any gravitational theory. We consider the Higgs inflation model as an application of our results.
We analyze junction conditions at a null or non-null hypersurface $Σ$ in a large class of scalar-tensor theories in arbitrary $n(\ge 3)$ dimensions. After showing that the metric and a scalar field must be continuous at $Σ$ as the first junction conditions, we derive the second junctions conditions from the Einstein equations and the equation of motion for the scalar field. Subsequently, we study $C^1$ regular matching conditions as well as vacuum conditions at $Σ$ both in the Jordan and Einstein frames. Our result suggests that the following configurations may be possible; (i) a vacuum thin-s…
The duality of gravitational dynamics (projected on a null hypersurface) and of fluid dynamics is investigated for the scalar tensor (ST) theory of gravity. The description of ST gravity, in both Einstein and Jordan frames, is analyzed from fluid-gravity viewpoint. In the Einstein frame the dynamical equation for the metric leads to the Damour-Navier-Stokes (DNS) equation with an external forcing term, coming from the scalar field in ST gravity. In the Jordan frame the situation is more subtle. We observe that finding the DNS equation in this frame can lead to two pictures. In one picture, the…
Scalar-Tensor theories of gravity can be formulated in different frames, most notably, the Einstein and the Jordan one. While some debate still persists in the literature on the physical status of the different frames, a frame transformation in Scalar-Tensor theories amounts to a local redefinition of the metric, and then should not affect physical results. We analyze the issue in a cosmological context. In particular, we define all the relevant observables (redshift, distances, cross-sections, ...) in terms of frame-independent quantities. Then, we give a frame-independent formulation of the …
