Ghosts, Strong Coupling and Accidental Symmetries in Massive Gravity

We show that the strong self-interaction of the scalar polarization of a massive graviton can be understood in terms of the propagation of an extra ghost-like degree of freedom, thus relating strong coupling to the sixth degree of freedom discussed by Boulware and Deser in their Hamiltonian analysis of massive gravity. This enables one to understand the Vainshtein recovery of solutions of massless gravity as being due to the effect of the exchange of this ghost which gets frozen at distances larger than the Vainshtein radius. Inside this region, we can trust the two-field Lagrangian perturbatively, while at larger distances one can use the higher derivative formulation. We also compare massive gravity with other models, namely deconstructed theories of gravity, as well as DGP model. In the latter case we argue that the Vainshtein recovery process is of different nature, not involving a ghost degree of freedom.Comment: 21 page

Amplituhedron meets Jeffrey-Kirwan Residue

The tree amplituhedra A^(m)_n,k are mathematical objects generalising the notion of polytopes into the Grassmannian. Proposed for m=4 as a geometric construction encoding tree-level scattering amplitudes in planar N=4 super Yang-Mills theory, they are mathematically interesting for any m. In this paper we strengthen the relation between scattering amplitudes and geometry by linking the amplituhedron to the Jeffrey-Kirwan residue, a powerful concept in symplectic and algebraic geometry. We focus on a particular class of amplituhedra in any dimension, namely cyclic polytopes, and their even-dimensional conjugates. We show how the Jeffrey-Kirwan residue prescription allows to extract the correct amplituhedron volume functions in all these cases. Notably, this also naturally exposes the rich combinatorial and geometric structures of amplituhedra, such as their regular triangulations.Peer reviewedFinal Accepted Versio

Massive graviton as a testable cold dark matter candidate

We construct a consistent model of gravity where the tensor graviton mode is massive, while linearized equations for scalar and vector metric perturbations are not modified. The Friedmann equation acquires an extra dark-energy component leading to accelerated expansion. The mass of the graviton can be as large as $\sim (10^{15}{cm})^{-1}$, being constrained by the pulsar timing measurements. We argue that non-relativistic gravitational waves can comprise the cold dark matter and may be detected by the future gravitational wave searches.Comment: 4 pages, final version to appear in PR

On First-Order Generalized Maxwell Equations

The generalized Maxwell equations including an additional scalar field are considered in the first-order formalism. The gauge invariance of the Lagrangian and equations is broken resulting the appearance of a scalar field. We find the canonical and symmetrical Belinfante energy-momentum tensors. It is shown that the traces of the energy-momentum tensors are not equal to zero and the dilatation symmetry is broken in the theory considered. The matrix Hamiltonian form of equations is obtained after the exclusion of the nondynamical components. The canonical quantization is performed and the propagator of the fields is found in the first-order formalism.Comment: 14 pages, corrections in Eq.(38),(39),(59

Matrix product state comparison of the numerical renormalization group and the variational formulation of the density matrix renormalization group

Wilson's numerical renormalization group (NRG) method for solving quantum impurity models yields a set of energy eigenstates that have the form of matrix product states (MPS). White's density matrix renormalization group (DMRG) for treating quantum lattice problems can likewise be reformulated in terms of MPS. Thus, the latter constitute a common algebraic structure for both approaches. We exploit this fact to compare the NRG approach for the single-impurity Anderson model to a variational matrix product state approach (VMPS), equivalent to single-site DMRG. For the latter, we use an ``unfolded'' Wilson chain, which brings about a significant reduction in numerical costs compared to those of NRG. We show that all NRG eigenstates (kept and discarded) can be reproduced using VMPS, and compare the difference in truncation criteria, sharp vs. smooth in energy space, of the two approaches. Finally, we demonstrate that NRG results can be improved upon systematically by performing a variational optimization in the space of variational matrix product states, using the states produced by NRG as input.Comment: 19 pages, 14 figure

Recovering General Relativity from massive gravity

We obtain static, spherically symmetric, and asymptotically flat numerical solutions of massive gravity with a source. Those solutions show, for the first time explicitly, a recovery of the Schwarzschild solution of General Relativity via the so-called Vainshtein mechanism.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figures; v2: minor changes, matches published versio

The Origin of Spontaneous Symmetry Breaking in Theories with Large Extra Dimensions

We suggest that the electroweak Higgs particles can be identified with extra-dimensional components of the gauge fields, which after compactification on a certain topologically non-trivial background become tachyonic and condense. If the tachyonic mass is a tree level effect, the natural scale of the gauge symmetry breaking is set by the inverse radius of the internal space, which, in case of the electroweak symmetry, must be around $\sim 1/$TeV. We discuss the possibility of a vanishing tree level mass for the Higgs. In such a scenario the tachyonic mass can be induced by quantum loops and can be naturally smaller than the compactification scale. We give an example in which this possibility can be realized. Starting from an Einstein--Yang--Mills theory coupled to fermions in 10-dimensions, we are able to reproduce the spectrum of the Standard Model like chiral fermions and Higgs type scalars in 4-dimensions upon compactifying on ${\mathbb{C}}P^1\times {\mathbb{C}}P^2$. The existence of a monopole solution on ${\mathbb{C}}P^1$ and a self dual U(1) instanton on ${\mathbb{C}}P^2$ are essential in obtaining chiral fermions as well as tachyonic or massless scalars in 4-dimensions. We give a simple rule which helps us to identify the presence of tachyons on the monopole background on $S^2$.Comment: 33 pages. Version accepted for publication in Phys.Rev.

Cosmological Expansion in the Presence of an Extra Dimension

It has recently been pointed out that global solutions of Einstein's equations for a 3-brane universe embedded in 4 spatial dimensions give rise to a Friedmann equation of the form H ~ rho on the brane, instead of the usual H ~ (rho)^{1/2}, which is inconsistent with cosmological observations. We remedy this problem by adding cosmological constants to the brane and the bulk, as in the recent scenario of Randall and Sundrum. Our observation allows for normal expansion during nucleosynthesis, but faster than normal expansion in the very early universe, which could be helpful for electroweak baryogenesis, for example.Comment: 4pp, latex, 1 figure; added and corrected references; revised incorrect argument about sign of action on brane; final version to be published in PR

Gauge Invariant Effective Lagrangian for Kaluza-Klein Modes

We construct a manifestly gauge invariant Lagrangian in 3+1 dimensions for N Kaluza-Klein modes of an SU(m) gauge theory in the bulk. For example, if the bulk is 4+1, the effective theory is \Pi_{i=1}^{N+1} SU(m)_i with N chiral (\bar{m},m) fields connecting the groups sequentially. This can be viewed as a Wilson action for a transverse lattice in x^5, and is shown explicitly to match the continuum 4+1 compactifed Lagrangian truncated in momentum space. Scale dependence of the gauge couplings is described by the standard renormalization group technique with threshold matching, leading to effective power law running. We also discuss the unitarity constraints, and chiral fermions.Comment: 21 pages, 4 figure