PT Journal
AU Beltran Jimenez, J
   Delhom, A
TI Ghosts in metric-affine higher order curvature gravity
SO European Physical Journal C
JI Eur. Phys. J. C
PY 2019
BP 656
EP 7pp
VL 79
IS 8
DI 10.1140/epjc/s10052-019-7149-x
LA English
AB 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 hybrid) formalisms and highlight the key importance of the projective symmetry and/or additional constraints for their physical viability and, by extension, of general metric-affine theories.
ER