Gravity from spontaneous Lorentz violation
Abstract
We investigate a class of theories involving a symmetric two-tensor field in Minkowski spacetime with a potential triggering spontaneous violation of Lorentz symmetry. The resulting massless Nambu-Goldstone modes are shown to obey the linearized Einstein equations in a fixed gauge. Imposing self-consistent coupling to the energy-momentum tensor constrains the potential for the Lorentz violation. The nonlinear theory generated from the self-consistent bootstrap is an alternative theory of gravity, containing kinetic and potential terms along with a matter coupling. At energies small compared to the Planck scale, the theory contains general relativity, with the Riemann-spacetime metric constructed as a combination of the two-tensor field and the Minkowski metric. At high energies, the structure of the theory is qualitatively different from general relativity. Observable effects can arise in suitable gravitational experiments.
- Publication:
-
Physical Review D
- Pub Date:
- March 2009
- DOI:
- 10.1103/PhysRevD.79.065018
- arXiv:
- arXiv:0901.0662
- Bibcode:
- 2009PhRvD..79f5018K
- Keywords:
-
- 11.30.Cp;
- 04.50.-h;
- 12.60.-i;
- Lorentz and Poincare invariance;
- Higher-dimensional gravity and other theories of gravity;
- Models beyond the standard model;
- General Relativity and Quantum Cosmology;
- Astrophysics - Cosmology and Nongalactic Astrophysics;
- High Energy Physics - Phenomenology;
- High Energy Physics - Theory
- E-Print:
- 51 pages