This thesis covers several developments performed in metric-affine gravity. This alternative framework extends General Relativity by considering a more general connection than the one induced by the metric (i.e., arbitrary torsion and nonmetricity participate in the dynamics). We start by revising some mathematical aspects of the metric-affine framework, the way Lovelock and other invariants are extended to it and the construction of a gauge formalism. Then we focus on metric-affine pp-wave geometries and explore solutions of this type for the quadratic metric-affine Lagrangian (with even-parity invariants). Finally, in the last part of the manuscript, we analyze from a more field-theoretical point of view the viability of different extensions of General Relativity by guaranteeing the stability of their degrees of freedom.
We study a parity violating Metric-Affine gravitational theory given by the Einstein-Hilbert action plus the so-called Holst term in vacuum. We find out that for a certain value of the Barbero-Immirzi parameter the total action possesses a remarkable invariance under particular transformations of the affine connection. We prove that in all cases, with appropriate gauge choices, the connection reduces to the Levi-Civita one and that the theory turns out to be equivalent to general relativity in vacuum. Subsequently, we generalize our discussion and analyze the case of Metric-Affine $f(R)$ gravi…
We set the foundation and formulate the Perfect (Ideal) Hyperfluid. The latter represents the natural generalization of the usual perfect fluid structure where now the microscopic characteristics of matter (spin, shear, dilation) are also taken into account, sourcing a non-Riemannian arena (i.e spacetime torsion and non-metricity) for Metric-Affine Gravity. We derive the energy tensors of this Hyperfluid structure and subsequently present the conservation laws obeyed by them. Finally, we consider a Cosmological application of this Perfect Hyperfluid and classify some possible forms of this flu…
We briefly describe the simplest class of affine theories of gravity in multidimensional space-times with symmetric connections and their reductions to two-dimensional dilaton - vecton gravity field theories (DVG). The distinctive feature of these theories is the presence of an absolutely neutral massive (or tachyonic) vector field (vecton) with essentially nonlinear coupling to the dilaton gravity (DG). We show that in DVG the vecton field can be consistently replaced by an effectively massive scalar field (scalaron) with an unusual coupling to dilaton gravity. With this vecton - scalaron dua…
In this paper we review the Myrzakulov Gravity models (MG-N, with $\mathrm{N = I, II, \ldots, VIII}$) and derive their respective metric-affine generalizations (MAMG-N), discussing also their particular sub-cases. The field equations of the theories are obtained by regarding the metric tensor and the general affine connection as independent variables. We then focus on the case in which the function characterizing the aforementioned metric-affine models is linear and consider a Friedmann-Lemaître-Robertson-Walker background to study cosmological aspects and applications.
Nowadays it is widely accepted that the evolution of the universe was driven by some scalar degrees of freedom both on its early stage and at present. The corresponding cosmological models often involve some scalar fields introduced ad hoc. In this paper we cultivate a different approach, which is based on a derivation of new scalar degrees of freedom from fundamental modifications of Einstein's gravity. In elaboration of our previous work, we here investigate properties of the dilaton-scalar gravity obtained by dimensional reductions of a recently proposed affine generalized gravity theory. W…
The nature of the classical canonical phase-space variables for gravity suggests that the associated quantum field operators should obey affine commutation relations rather than canonical commutation relations. Prior to the introduction of constraints, a primary kinematical representation is derived in the form of a reproducing kernel and its associated reproducing kernel Hilbert space. Constraints are introduced following the projection operator method which involves no gauge fixing, no complicated moduli space, nor any auxiliary fields. The result, which is only qualitatively sketched in the…
We reveal the existence of a certain hidden symmetry in general ghost-free scalar-tensor theories which can only be seen when generalizing the geometry of the spacetime from Riemannian. For this purpose, we study scalar-tensor theories in the metric-affine (Palatini) formalism of gravity, which we call scalar-metric-affine theories for short, where the metric and the connection are independent. We show that the projective symmetry, a local symmetry under a shift of the connection, can provide a ghost-free structure of scalar-metric-affine theories. The ghostly sector of the second-order deriva…
The intriguing choice to treat alternative theories of gravity by means of the Palatini approach, namely elevating the affine connection to the role of independent variable, contains the seed of some interesting (usually under-explored) generalizations of General Relativity, the metric-affine theories of gravity. The peculiar aspect of these theories is to provide a natural way for matter fields to be coupled to the independent connection through the covariant derivative built from the connection itself. Adopting a procedure borrowed from the effective field theory prescriptions, we study the …
We review the correspondence between symmetric affine theories and the nonlinear Einstein-Proca system that was found by Einstein and Schrodinger. With the use of this correspondence, we investigate static spherically symmetric solutions in symmetric affine theory with no matter fields. Use of the correspondence leads to a significant simplification of the calculation. A special instance of ``no-hair'' theorem for symmetric affine theory is established.
Reassessing the foundations of Metric-Affine Gravity
Masaryk University（马萨里克大学）；University of Graz（格拉茨大学）；Mons University – UMONS（蒙斯大学）；Politecnico di Torino – PoliTo（都灵理工大学）；Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare, Section of Torino – INFN（意大利国家核物理研究所都灵分部）
After a brief exposition of the simplest class of affine theories of gravity in multidimensional space-times with symmetric connections, we consider the spherical and cylindrical reductions of these theories to two-dimensional dilaton-vecton gravity (DVG) field theories. The distinctive feature of these theories is the presence of a massive/tachyonic vector field (vecton) with essentially nonlinear coupling to the dilaton gravity. In the massless limit, the classical DVG theory can be exactly solved for a rather general coupling depending only on the field tensor and the dilaton. We show that …
This Thesis is devoted to the study of Metric-Affine Theories of Gravity and Applications to Cosmology. The thesis is organized as follows. In the first Chapter we define the various geometrical quantities that characterize a non-Riemannian geometry. In the second Chapter we explore the MAG model building. In Chapter 3 we use a well known procedure to excite torsional degrees of freedom by coupling surface terms to scalars. Then, in Chapter 4 which seems to be the most important Chapter of the thesis, at least with regards to its use in applications, we present a step by step way to solve for …
In a geometrical approach to gravity the metric and the (gravitational) connection can be independent and one deals with metric-affine theories. We construct the most general action of metric-affine effective field theories, including a generic matter sector, where the connection does not carry additional dynamical fields. Among other things, this helps in identifying the complement set of effective field theories where there are other dynamical fields, which can have an interesting phenomenology. Within the latter set, we study in detail a vast class where the Holst invariant (the contraction…
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 …
We discuss the presence of ghostly instabilities for metric-affine theories constructed with higher order curvature terms. We mainly focus on theories containing only the Ricci tensor and show the crucial role played by the projective symmetry. The pathological modes arise from the absence of a pure kinetic term for the projective mode and the non-minimal coupling of a 2-form field contained in the connection, and which can be related to the antisymmetric part of the metric in non-symmetric gravity theories. The couplings to matter are considered at length and cannot be used to render the theo…
We give a geometrical description of gravitational theories from the viewpoint of symmetries and affine structure. We show how gravity, considered as a gauge theory, can be consistently achieved by the nonlinear realization of the conformal-affine group in an indirect manner: due the partial isomorphism between $CA\left( 3,1\right) $ and the centrally extended $Sp\left( 8\right) $, we perform a nonlinear realization of the centrally extended (CE)$Sp\left( 8\right) $ in its semi-simple version. In particular, starting from the bundle structure of gravity, we derive the conformal-affine Lie alge…
We extend the scope of the Raychaudhuri-Komar singularity theorem of General Relativity to affine theories of gravity with and without torsion. We first generalize the existing focusing theorems using time-like and null congruences of curves which are hypersurface orthogonal, showing how the presence of torsion affects the formation of focal points in Lorentzian manifolds. Considering the energy conservation on a given affine gravity theory, we prove new singularity theorems for accelerated curves in the cases of Lorentzian manifolds containing perfect fluids or scalar field matter sources.
We show that almost all metric--affine theories of gravity yield Einstein equations with a non--null cosmological constant $Λ$. Under certain circumstances and for any dimension, it is also possible to incorporate a Weyl vector field $W_μ$ and therefore the presence of an anisotropy. The viability of these field equations is discussed in view of recent astrophysical observations.
In metric-affine theories of gravity such as the C-theories, the spacetime connection is associated to a metric that is nontrivially related to the physical metric. In this article, such theories are rewritten in terms of a single metric and it is shown that they can be recast as effectively nonlocal gravity. With some assumptions, known ghost-free theories with non-singular and cosmologically interesting properties may be recovered. Relations between different formulations are analysed at both perturbative and nonperturbative levels taking carefully into account subtleties with boundary condi…
In this work we study the stability of the four vector irreducible pieces of the torsion and the nonmetricity tensors in the general quadratic metric-affine Lagrangian in 4 dimensions. The goal will be to elucidate under which conditions the spin-1 modes associated to such vectors can propagate in a safe way, together with the graviton. This highly constrains the theory reducing the parameter space of the quadratic curvature part from 16 to 5 parameters. We also study the sub-case of Weyl-Cartan gravity, proving that the stability of the vector sector is only compatible with an Einstein-Proca …
In this paper we extend the projective symmetry of the full metric-affine Einstein-Hilbert theory to a new symmetry transformation in the space of affine connections called the amplified symmetry. We prove that the Lagrangian of the Standard Model of particle physics is invariant under this new symmetry. We also show that the gravitational Lagrangian can be modified so that the amplified symmetry extends to the gravitational sector and hence to the whole action. The new theory so constructed is shown to be dynamically equivalent to Einstein-Cartan's though genuinely metric-affine.
We study f(R,T) theories of gravity, where T is the trace of the energy-momentum tensor T_{μν}, with independent metric and affine connection (metric-affine theories). We find that the resulting field equations share a close resemblance with their metric-affine f(R) relatives once an effective energy-momentum tensor is introduced. As a result, the metric field equations are second-order and no new propagating degrees of freedom arise as compared to GR, which contrasts with the metric formulation of these theories, where a dynamical scalar degree of freedom is present. Analogously to its metric…
We study scalar-tensor theories respecting the projective invariance in the metric-affine formalism. The metric-affine formalism is a formulation of gravitational theories such that the metric and the connection are independent variables in the first place. In this formalism, the Einstein-Hilbert action has an additional invariance, called the projective invariance, under a shift of the connection. Respecting this invariance for the construction of the scalar-tensor theories, we find that the Galileon terms in curved spacetime are uniquely specified at least up to quartic order which does not …
A common approach to metric-affine, local Poincaré, special-relativistic and Galilei spacetime geometry is developed. Starting from an affine composite bundle, we introduce local reference frames and their evolution along worldlines and we study both, absolute and relative simultaneity postulates, giving rise to alternative concepts of spacetime. In particular, the construction of the Minkowski metric, and its required invariance, allows either to reorganize the original affine bundle as a metric-affine geometry with explicit Lorentz symmetry, or to restrict it to a Poincaré geometry, both of …
General Relativity assumes that spacetime is fully described by the metric alone. An alternative is the so called Palatini formalism where the metric and the connections are taken as independent quantities. The metric-affine theory of gravity has attracted considerable attention recently, since it was shown that within this framework some cosmological models, based on some generalized gravitational actions, can account for the current accelerated expansion of the universe. However we think that metric-affine gravity deserves much more attention than that related to cosmological applications an…
We explore ways to obtain the very existence of a space-time metric from an action principle that does not refer to it a priori. Although there are reasons to believe that only a non-local theory can viably achieve this goal, we investigate here local theories that start with Schroedinger's purely affine theory [21], where he gave reasons to set the metric proportional to the Ricci curvature aposteriori. When we leave the context of unified field theory, and we couple the non-gravitational matter using some weak equivalence principle, we can show that the propagation of shock waves does not de…
Universitá di Napoli ”Federico II”（那不勒斯费德里科二世大学）；Scuola Superiore Meridionale（南方高等学院）；Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare – Sezione di Napoli（意大利国家核物理研究所那不勒斯分部）
This work provides a short but comprehensible overview of some relevant aspects of metric-affine theories of gravity in relation to the physics and astrophysics of compact objects. We shall highlight the pertinence of this approach to supersede General Relativity on its strong-field regime, as well as its advantages and some of its difficulties. Moreover, we shall reflect on the present and future opportunities to testing its predictions with relativistic and non-relativistic stars, black holes, and other exotic horizonless compact objects.
We undertake the construction of quadratic parity-violating terms involving the curvature in the four-dimensional metric-affine gravity. We demonstrate that there are only 12 linearly independent scalars, plus an additional one that can be removed by using the Pontryagin invariant. Several convenient bases for this sector are provided in both components and differential form notation. We also particularize our general findings to some constrained geometries like Weyl-Cartan and metric-compatible connections.
The purely affine, metric-affine and purely metric formulation of general relativity are dynamically equivalent and the relation between them is analogous to the Legendre relation between the Lagrangian and Hamiltonian dynamics. We show that one cannot construct a dynamically equivalent, purely affine Lagrangian from a metric-affine or metric F(R) Lagrangian, nonlinear in the curvature scalar. Thus the equivalence between the purely affine picture and the two other formulations does not hold for metric-affine and metric theories of gravity with a nonlinear dependence on the curvature, i.e. F(R…
In this paper we introduce a new procedure, termed by us \emph{energy formalism}, to deal with dissipative systems in metric theories of gravity. This approach aims at determining the analytic expression of Rayleigh dissipation function in the context of the inverse problem in the calculus of variations. We describe our method in detail, presenting a simple example. After, we consider as first extensive application the general relativistic Poynting-Robertson effect. The obtained results and future implications are discussed.
In this PhD thesis we deal with several theoretical and phenomenological apsects of metric-affine theories of gravity. Concretely, we first give a broad introduction to the necessary tools to understand the framework and elaborate on some subtleties of the minimal coupling prescription between geometry and matter in presence of torsion and nonmetricity. Then we dedicate the central part of the thesis to study the structure of Ricci Based gravity (RBG) theories, which will be of later use to understand generic properties of metric-affine theories. We begin by analysing the structure of the RBG …
In the first part, we discuss the interplay between local scale invariance and metric-affine degrees of freedom from few distinct points of view. We argue, rather generally, that the gauging of Weyl symmetry is a natural byproduct of requiring that scale invariance is a symmetry of a gravitational theory that is based on a metric and on an independent affine structure degrees of freedom. In the second part, we compute the Nöther identities associated with all the gauge symmetries, including Weyl, Lorentz and diffeomorphisms invariances, for general actions with matter degrees of freedom, explo…
Minisuperpace Quantum Cosmology is an approach by which it is possible to infer initial conditions for dynamical systems which can suitably represent observable and non-observable universes. Here we discuss theories of gravity which, from various points of view, extend Einstein's General Relativity. Specifically, the Hamiltonian formalism for $f(R)$, $f(T)$ and $f(\mathcal{G})$ gravity, with $R$, $T$, and $\mathcal{G}$ being the curvature, torsion and Gauss--Bonnet scalars, respectively, is developed starting from the Arnowitt-Deser-Misner approach. The Minisuperspace Quantum Cosmology is deri…
We revisit the gauge symmetry related to integrable projective transformations in metric-affine formalism, identifying the gauge field of the Weyl (conformal) symmetry as a dynamical component of the affine connection. In particular, we show how to include the local scaling symmetry as a gauge symmetry of a large class of geometric gravity theories, introducing a compensator dilaton field that naturally gives rise to a Stückelberg sector where a spontaneous breaking mechanism of the conformal symmetry is at work to generate a mass scale for the gauge field. For Ricci-based gravities that inclu…
In a talk at the conference {\it Geometrical Foundations of Gravity at Tartu 2017}, it was suggested that the affine spacetime connection could be associated with purely fictitious forces. This leads to gravitation in a flat and smooth geometry. Fermions are found to nevertheless couple with the metrical connection and a phase gauge field. The theory is reviewed in this proceeding, in a Palatini and in a metric-affine gauge formulation.
How to include spacetime translations in fibre bundle gauge theories has been a subject of controversy, because spacetime symmetries are not internal symmetries of the bundle structure group. The standard method for including affine symmetry in differential geometry is to define a Cartan connection on an affine bundle over spacetime. This is equivalent to (1) defining an affine connection on the affine bundle, (2) defining a zero section on the associated affine vector bundle, and (3) using the affine connection and the zero section to define an "associated solder form," whose lift to a tensor…
Among the general class of metric-affine theories of gravity, there is a special class conformed by those endowed with a projective symmetry. Perhaps the simplest manner to realise this symmetry is by constructing the action in terms of the symmetric part of the Ricci tensor. In these theories, the connection can be solved algebraically in terms of a metric that relates to the spacetime metric by means of the so-called deformation matrix that is given in terms of the matter fields. In most phenomenological applications, this deformation matrix is assumed to inherit the symmetries of the matter…
Metric-affine theories of gravity provide an interesting alternative to General Relativity: in such an approach, the metric and the affine (not necessarily symmetric) connection are independent quantities. Furthermore, the action should include covariant derivatives of the matter fields, with the covariant derivative naturally defined using the independent connection. As a result, in metric-affine theories a direct coupling involving matter and connection is also present. The role and the dynamics of the connection in such theories is explored. We employ power counting in order to construct th…
Some classical aspects of Metric-Affine Gravity are reviewed in the context of the $F^{(n)}(R)$ type models (polynomials of degree $n$ in the Riemann tensor) and the topologically massive gravity. At the non-perturbative level, we explore the consistency of the field equations when the $F^{(n)}(R)$ models are reduced to a Riemann-Christoffel (RCh) space-time, either via a Riemann-Cartan (RC) space or via an Einstein-Weyl (EW) space. It is well known for the case $F^{(1)}(R)=R$ that any path or reduction "classes" via RC or EW, leads to the same field equations with the exception of the $F^{(n)…
We discuss in a critical way the physical foundations of geometric structure of relativistic theories of gravity by the so-called Ehlers-Pirani-Schild formalism. This approach provides a natural interpretation of the observables showing how relate them to General Relativity and to a large class of Extended Theories of Gravity. In particular we show that, in such a formalism, geodesic and causal structures of space-time can be safely disentangled allowing a correct analysis in view of observations and experiment. As specific case, we take into account the case of f(R) gravity.
We discuss theories of gravity with independent metric (or frame field) and connection, from the point of view of effective field theory. We count the parity-even Lagrangian terms of dimension up to four and give explicit bases for the independent terms that contribute to the two-point function. We then give the decomposition of the linearized action on a complete basis of spin projectors and consider various subclasses of Metric-Affine Gravity theories (MAGs). We show that teleparallel theories can be dynamically equivalent to any metric theory of gravity and give the particle content of thos…
It is well known that the teleparallel equivalent of general relativity yields the same vacuum solutions as general relativity does, which ensures that this particular teleparallel model is in good agreement with experiments. A less known result concerns the existence of a wider class of teleparallel models which also admits these solutions when the spacetime is diagonalizable by means of a coordinate change. However, it is stated in Ref. [Phys. Rev. D 67, 044016 (2003).] that the teleparallel equivalent of general relativity is the only teleparallel model which admits black holes. To show tha…
Improvement of the classical gravity with the running gravitational coupling obtained from asymptotically safe gravity, is a good way of considering the effects of quantum gravity. This is usually done for metric theories of gravity. Here we investigate the effects of such an improvement for pure affine theories of gravity. To motivate the approach, we first consider the effects of quantum improvement on the connection using metric theory and investigate the effects on the causal structure of black hole solution. Next in the framework of Schrödinger-Eddington affine theory, the general way of …
There is a number of completely integrable gravity theories in two dimensions. We study the metric-affine approach on a 2-dimensional spacetime and display a new integrable model. Its properties are described and compared with the known results of Poincare gauge gravity.
We present current theories about the structure of space and time, where the building blocks are some fundamental entities (yes-no experiment, quantum processes, spin net-work, preparticles) that do not presuppose the existence of space and time. The relations among these objects are the base for a pregeometry of discrete character, the continuous limit of which gives rise to the physical properties of the space and time.
