Fifth forces and frame invariance

Abstract

I discuss how one can apply the covariant formalism developed by Vilkovisky and DeWitt to obtain frame invariant fifth force calculations for scalar-tensor theories. Fifth forces are severely constrained by astrophysical measurements. It was shown previously that for scale-invariant Higgs-dilaton gravity, in a particular choice of Jordan frame, the dilaton fifth force is dramatically suppressed, evading the observational constraints. Using a geometric approach I extend this result to all frames, and show that the usual dichotomy of "Jordan frame" versus "Einstein frame" is better understood as a continuum of frames: submanifold slices of a more general field space.

A guide to frames, $2π$'s, scales and corrections in string compactifications

“…See e.g [1,2,3,4,5]. and references therein for some interesting discussions on the equivalence of the Einstein and Jordan frames in cosmology.…”