Massive Gravity in de Sitter Space via Gravitational Higgs Mechanism

TL;DR

This paper explores massive gravity in de Sitter space using a nonlinear gravitational Higgs mechanism, addressing issues of symmetry, ghost states, and unitarity in the full nonlinear theory.

Contribution

It provides a non-perturbative definition of massive gravity in de Sitter space and shows the absence of ghosts and enhanced symmetry in the full nonlinear theory.

Findings

No enhanced symmetry in the full nonlinear theory

No null norm state at the special graviton mass value

Full nonlinear theory likely unitary for all graviton masses

Abstract

In this paper we discuss massive gravity in de Sitter space via gravitational Higgs mechanism, which provides a nonlinear definition thereof. The Higgs scalars are described by a nonlinear sigma model, which includes higher derivative terms required to obtain the Fierz-Pauli mass term. Using the aforesaid non-perturbative definition, we address appearance of an enhanced local symmetry and a null norm state in the linearized massive gravity in de Sitter space at the special value of the graviton mass to the Hubble parameter ratio. By studying full non-perturbative equations of motion, we argue that there is no enhanced symmetry in the full nonlinear theory. We then argue that in the full nonlinear theory no null norm state is expected to arise at the aforesaid special value. This suggests that no ghost might be present for lower graviton mass values and the full nonlinear theory might be unitary for all values of the graviton mass and the Hubble parameter with no van Dam-Veltman-Zakharov discontinuity. We argue that this is indeed the case by studying full nonlinear Hamiltonian for the relevant conformal and helicity-0 longitudinal modes. In particular, we argue that no negative norm state is present in the full nonlinear theory.