Well-Posed Formulation of Scalar-Tensor Effective Field Theory

Effective field theory provides a way of parametrizing strong-field deviations from general relativity that might be observable in the gravitational waves emitted in a black hole merger. To perform numerical simulations of mergers in such theories it is necessary that the equations be written in a f...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Physical review letters 2020-06, Vol.124 (22), p.1-221101, Article 221101
Main Authors: Kovács, Áron D., Reall, Harvey S.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Computer simulation
Equations of motion
Field theory
Gauges
Gravitational waves
Mathematical analysis
Relativity
Scalars
Tensors
Well posed problems
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Summary:Effective field theory provides a way of parametrizing strong-field deviations from general relativity that might be observable in the gravitational waves emitted in a black hole merger. To perform numerical simulations of mergers in such theories it is necessary that the equations be written in a form that admits a well-posed initial value formulation. We study gravity coupled to a scalar field including the leading (four-derivative) effective field theory corrections. We introduce a new class of "modified harmonic" gauges and gauge-fixed equations of motion, such that, at weak coupling, the equations are strongly hyperbolic and therefore admit a well-posed initial value formulation.
ISSN:0031-9007
1079-7114
DOI:10.1103/PhysRevLett.124.221101