Olmo, G. J., & Rubiera-Garcia, D. (2013). Importance of torsion and invariant volumes in Palatini theories of gravity. Phys. Rev. D, 88(8), 084030–11pp.
Abstract: We study the field equations of extensions of general relativity formulated within a metric-affine formalism setting torsion to zero (Palatini approach). We find that different (second-order) dynamical equations arise depending on whether torsion is set to zero (i) a priori or (ii) a posteriori, i.e., before or after considering variations of the action. Considering a generic family of Ricci-squared theories, we show that in both cases the connection can be decomposed as the sum of a Levi-Civita connection and terms depending on a vector field. However, while in case (i) this vector field is related to the symmetric part of the connection, in (ii) it comes from the torsion part and, therefore, it vanishes once torsion is completely removed. Moreover, the vanishing of this torsion-related vector field immediately implies the vanishing of the antisymmetric part of the Ricci tensor, which therefore plays no role in the dynamics. Related to this, we find that the Levi-Civita part of the connection is due to the existence of an invariant volume associated with an auxiliary metric h(mu v), which is algebraically related with the physical metric g(mu v).
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Harko, T., Koivisto, T. S., Lobo, F. S. N., Olmo, G. J., & Rubiera-Garcia, D. (2018). Coupling matter in modified Q gravity. Phys. Rev. D, 98(8), 084043–13pp.
Abstract: We present a novel theory of gravity by considering an extension of symmetric teleparallel gravity. This is done by introducing, in the framework of the metric-affine formalism, a new class of theories where the nonmetricity Q is nonminimally coupled to the matter Lagrangian. More specifically, we consider a Lagrangian of the form L similar to f(1)(Q) + f(2)(Q)L-M, where f(1) and f(2) are generic functions of Q, and L-M is the matter Lagrangian. This nonminimal coupling entails the nonconservation of the energy-momentum tensor, and consequently the appearance of an extra force. The formulation of the gravity sector in terms of the Q instead of the curvature may result in subtle improvements of the theory. In the context of nonminimal matter couplings, we are therefore motivated to explore whether the new geometrical formulation in terms of the Q, when implemented also in the matter sector, would allow more universally consistent and viable realizations of the nonminimal coupling. Furthermore, we consider several cosmological applications by presenting the evolution equations and imposing specific functional forms of the functions f(1)(Q) and f(2)(Q), such as power-law and exponential dependencies of the nonminimal couplings. Cosmological solutions are considered in two general classes of models, and found to feature accelerating expansion at late times.
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Dias da Silva, L. F., Lobo, F. S. N., Olmo, G. J., & Rubiera-Garcia, D. (2023). Photon rings as tests for alternative spherically symmetric geometries with thin accretion disks. Phys. Rev. D, 108(8), 084055–18pp.
Abstract: The imaging by the Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) of the supermassive central objects at the heart of the M87 and Milky Way (Sgr A*) galaxies, has marked the first step into peering at the photon rings and central brightness depression that characterize the optical appearance of black holes surrounded by an accretion disk. Recently, Vagnozzi et al. [arXiv:2205.07787] used the claim by the EHT that the size of the shadow of Sgr A* can be inferred by calibrated measurements of the bright ring enclosing it, to constrain a large number of spherically symmetric space-time geometries. In this work we use this result to study some features of the first and second photon rings of a restricted pool of such geometries in thin accretion disk settings. The emission profile of the latter is described by calling upon three analytic samples belonging to the family introduced by Gralla, Lupsasca, and Marrone, in order to characterize such photon rings using the Lyapunov exponent of nearly bound orbits and discuss its correlation with the luminosity extinction rate between the first and second photon rings. We finally elaborate on the chances of using such photon rings as observational discriminators of alternative black hole geometries using very long baseline interferometry.
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Guerrero, M., Olmo, G. J., Rubiera-Garcia, D., & Saez-Chillon Gomez, D. (2022). Light ring images of double photon spheres in black hole and wormhole spacetimes. Phys. Rev. D, 105(8), 084057–16pp.
Abstract: The silhouette of a black hole having a critical curve (an unstable bound photon orbit) when illuminated by an optically thin accretion disk whose emission is confined to the equatorial plane shows a distinctive central brightness depression (the shadow) whose outer edge consists of a series of strongly lensed, selfsimilar rings superimposed with the disk???s direct emission. While the size and shape of the critical curve depend only on the background geometry, the pattern of bright and dark regions (including the size and depth of the shadow itself) in the image is strongly influenced by the (astro)physics of the accretion disk. This aspect makes it difficult to extract clean and clear observational discriminators between the Kerr black hole and other compact objects. In the presence of a second critical curve, however, observational differences become apparent. In this work we shall consider some spherically symmetric black hole and wormhole geometries characterized by the presence of a second critical curve, via a uniparametric family of extensions of the Schwarzschild metric. By assuming three toy models of geometrically thin accretion disks, we show the presence of additional light rings in the intermediate region between the two critical curves. The observation of such rings could represent a compelling evidence for the existence of black hole mimickers having multiple critical curves.
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Afonso, V. I., Bejarano, C., Ferraro, R., & Olmo, G. J. (2022). Determinantal Born-Infeld coupling of gravity and electromagnetism. Phys. Rev. D, 105(8), 084067–11pp.
Abstract: We study a Born-Infeld inspired model of gravity and electromagnetism in which both types of fields are treated on an equal footing via a determinantal approach in a metric-aft me formulation. Though this formulation is a priori in conflict with the postulates of metric theories of gravity, we find that the resulting equations can also be obtained from an action combining the Einstein-Hilbert action with a minimally coupled nonlinear electrodynamics. As an example, the dynamics is solved for the charged static black hole.
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