Geometric inequivalence of metric and Palatini formulations of General Relativity
Projective invariance is a symmetry of the Palatini version of General Relativity which is not present in the metric formulation. The fact that the Riemann tensor changes nontrivially under projective transformations implies that, unlike in the usual metric approach, in the Palatini formulation this tensor is subject to a gauge freedom, which allows some ambiguities even in its scalar contractions. In this sense, we show that for the Schwarzschild solution there exists a projective gauge in which the (affine) Kretschmann scalar, K≡R R , can be set to vanish everywhere. This puts forward that the divergence of curvature scalars may, in some cases, be avoided by a gauge transformation of the …
Inconsistencies in four-dimensional Einstein-Gauss-Bonnet gravity
We attempt to clarify several aspects concerning the recently presented four-dimensional Einstein-Gauss-Bonnet gravity. We argue that the limiting procedure outlined in [Phys. Rev. Lett. 124, 081301 (2020)] generally involves ill-defined terms in the four dimensional field equations. Potential ways to circumvent this issue are discussed, alongside remarks regarding specific solutions of the theory. We prove that, although linear perturbations are well behaved around maximally symmetric backgrounds, the equations for second-order perturbations are ill-defined even around a Minkowskian background. Additionally, we perform a detailed analysis of the spherically symmetric solutions and find tha…
Comment on “Einstein-Gauss-Bonnet Gravity in Four-Dimensional Spacetime”
We argue that several statements in Phys. Rev. Lett. 124, 081301 (2020) are not correct.