Related papers: Naturalness and Dimensional Transmutation in Class…
The $f(T,T_G)$ class of gravitational modification, based on the quadratic torsion scalar $T$, as well as on the new quartic torsion scalar $T_G$ which is the teleparallel equivalent of the Gauss-Bonnet term, is a novel theory, different…
Motivated by the apparent dependence of string $\sigma$--models on the sum of spacetime metric and antisymmetric tensor fields, we reconsider gravity theories constructed from a nonsymmetric metric. We first show that all such "geometrical"…
A modification of the Einstein-Hilbert theory, the Covariant Canonical Gauge Gravity (CCGG), leads to a cosmological constant that represents the energy of the space-time continuum when deformed from its (A)dS ground state to a flat…
Gravitational instantons ''Lambda-instantons'' are defined here for any given value Lambda of the cosmological constant. A multiple of the Euler characteristic appears as an upper bound for the de Sitter action and as a lower bound for a…
Spontaneous scalarization is an interesting mechanism for modification of gravity by nonminimal coupling of a scalar field to matter or curvature invariants in the context of scalar-tensor theories, and its onset is signaled by linear…
A new class of gravity-matter models defined in terms of two independent non-Riemannian volume forms (alternative generally covariant integration measure densities) on the space-time manifold are studied in some detail. These models involve…
We examine the question of scale vs. conformal invariance for the linearized Einstein-Hilbert action, which describes the IR fixed point of quantum gravity. In $D = 4$, although the action is not conformally invariant in the usual sense, we…
It is shown that in the quadratic gravity based on Weyl's conformal geometry, the Planck mass scale can be generated from quantum effects of the gravitational field and the Weyl gauge field via the Coleman-Weinberg mechanism where a local…
In classical gravity deviations from the predictions of the Einstein theory are often discussed within the framework of the conformal Newtonian gauge, where scalar perturbations are described by two potentials $\phi$ and $\psi$. In this…
We review and extend in several directions recent results on the asymptotic safety approach to quantum gravity. The central issue in this approach is the search of a Fixed Point having suitable properties, and the tool that is used is a…
Based on the recent result that, if the masses of timelike fields are point-dependent fields themselves, the action of matter fields is conformal form-invariant in its standard form, and on the active and passive approaches to conformal…
In a companion paper, we have emphasized the role of the Drinfeld double DSU(2) in the context of three dimensional Riemannian Loop Quantum Gravity coupled to massive spinless point particles. We make use of this result to propose a model…
A scalar-tensor theory of gravity is formulated in which $G$ and particle masses are allowed to vary. The theory yields a globally static cosmological model with no evolutionary timescales, no cosmological coincidences, and no flatness and…
We demonstrate that there exists a large class of action functionals of the scalar curvature and of the Gauss-Bonnet invariant which are able to relax dynamically a large cosmological constant (CC), whatever it be its starting value in the…
A scale--dependent effective action for gravity is introduced and an exact nonperturbative evolution equation is derived which governs its renormalization group flow. It is invariant under general coordinate transformations and satisfies…
We offer a perspective on some recent results obtained in the context of the group field theory approach to quantum gravity, on top of reviewing them briefly. These concern a natural mechanism for the emergence of non-commutative field…
In this paper cosmological dynamics in Einstein-Gauss-Bonnet gravity with a perfect fluid source in arbitrary dimension is studied. A systematic analysis is performed for the case that the theory does not admit maximally symmetric…
We intend to clarify the interplay between boundary terms and conformal transformations in scalar-tensor theories of gravity. We first consider the action for pure gravity in five dimensions and show that, on compactifing a la Kaluza-Klein…
Group field theory (GFT) models for quantum gravity coupled to a massless scalar field give rise to cosmological models that reproduce the (expanding or contracting) dynamics of homogeneous and isotropic spacetimes in general relativity at…
The theory of scalar gravity proposed by Nordstr\"{o}m, and refined by Einstein and Fokker, provides a striking analogy to general relativity. In its modern form, scalar gravity appears as the low-energy effective field theory of the…