Breakdown of the initial value formulation of scalar-tensor gravity and its physical meaning

2008/08/14 by Valerio Faraoni, Nicolas Lanahan-Tremblay
Engineering · Mathematics · Physics and Astronomy · #Advanced Differential Geometry Research #Black Holes and Theoretical Physics #Classical mechanics #Conformal map #Cosmology and Gravitation Theories #Einstein #Engineering #Geometry #Gravitation #Gravitational singularity #Initial value problem #Mathematical analysis #Mathematical physics #Mathematics #Metric (unit) #Physics #Pure mathematics #Quantum gravity #Quantum mechanics #Scalar (mathematics) #Tensor (intrinsic definition) #Theoretical physics #f(R) gravity #gr-qc

paper · pdf · doi:10.1103/physrevd.78.064017

published as Phys.Rev.D78:064017,2008 · 14 pages, LaTex, to appear in Phys. Rev. D

arxiv created 2008/08/14 · openalex publication_date 2008/09/08 · arxiv updated 2009/12/01 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/08/05

Abstract

We revisit singularities of two distinct kinds in the Cauchy problem of general scalar-tensor theories of gravity (previously discussed in the literature), and of metric and Palatini f(R) gravity, in both their Jordan and Einstein frame representations. Examples and toy models are used to shed light onto the problem and it is shown that, contrary to common lore, the two conformal frames are equivalent with respect to the initial value problem.

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