On the Hamiltonian analysis of non-linear massive gravity

TL;DR

This paper offers a straightforward, independent argument demonstrating the absence of the Boulware-Deser ghost in a class of non-linear massive gravity theories, providing a potentially useful formalism for further theoretical analysis.

Contribution

It introduces a simple, non-constructive argument for ghost absence in non-linear massive gravity, complementing existing methods and aiding formal discussions.

Findings

Confirmed the ghost-free nature of the theory

Provided a new formalism for analyzing massive gravity

Simplified the conceptual understanding of the theory

Abstract

In this paper we present a very simple and independent argument for the absence of the Boulware-Deser ghost in the recently proposed potentially ghost-free non-linear massive gravity. The limitation is that, in its simple form, the argument is, in a sense, non-constructive and less explicit than the standard approach. However, the formalism developed here may prove to be useful for discussing the formal aspects of the theory.