Maximal Acceleration, Reciprocity & Nonlocality

TL;DR

This paper proposes that incorporating a fundamental acceleration scale via the reciprocity principle leads to a nonlocal modification of gravity, potentially guiding the development of a quantum gravity theory.

Contribution

It introduces a novel approach by linking the reciprocity principle to a nonlocal extension of gravity, emphasizing the importance of a fundamental acceleration scale.

Findings

Reciprocity principle suggests a fundamental acceleration scale.

Links between the reciprocity principle and string theory are discussed.

Proposes an infinite-derivative, nonlocal gravity model.

Abstract

The existence of a fundamental scale is expected to be a key feature of quantum gravity. Many approaches take this property as a starting assumption. Here, instead, we take a less conventional viewpoint based on a critical inspection of both fundamental principles and kinematic laws. We point out that rigorous arguments suggest a more urgent need to revise known theories to incorporate a fundamental acceleration scale already in flat space. The reciprocity principle can naturally do so. In addition to noticing links with string theory, we argue that the reciprocity principle implies an infinite-derivative generalization of the Einstein-Hilbert action that makes the gravitational interaction fundamentally nonlocal, thus providing a guiding principle that could lead us towards the formulation of a consistent theory of quantum gravity.