Theoretical aspects of the equivalence principle

By T. Damour. 2012

167 citations recorded by the source corpus.

We review several theoretical aspects of the equivalence principle (EP). We emphasize the unsatisfactory fact that the EP maintains the absolute character of the coupling constants of physics, while general relativity and its generalizations (Kaluza–Klein, …, string theory) suggest that all absolute structures should be replaced by dynamical entities. We discuss the EP-violation phenomenology of dilaton-like models, which is likely to be dominated by the linear superposition of two effects: a signal proportional to the nuclear Coulomb energy, related to the variation of the fine-structure constant, and a signal proportional to the surface nuclear binding energy, related to the variation of the light quark masses. We recall various theoretical arguments (including a recently proposed anthropic argument) suggesting that the EP be violated at a small, but not unmeasurably small level. This motivates the need for improved tests of the EP. These tests are probing new territories in physics that are related to deep, and mysterious, issues in fundamental physics.

Subfields: Astronomy and Astrophysics, Atomic and Molecular Physics, and Optics, Political Science and International Relations

View Paper: https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/8d2e56efb7b594ce6c8bcaa317ad97981186af4c

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Citations in the corpus

Search for New Physics with Atoms and Molecules (2017, methodology): “Use of the heavy alkaline earth Yb will broaden the scope of atom interferometric EEP tests in view of EEP violation parametrization based on the dilaton model described by Damour (2012).”
Generalized Curvature-Matter Couplings in Modified Gravity (2014, background): “Note that one may motivate the introduction of the action Equation (105) by the extensive interest in the literature between couplings between the scalar and the matter fields [112–126].”
STE-QUEST—test of the universality of free fall using cold atom interferometry (2013, unknown): “Following [7], which is one candidate theory”
Quantum test of the Universality of Free Fall using rubidium and potassium (2020, background): “when parametrizing observable physics in the minimal Standard Model extension [18–20] or in dilaton coupling scenarios [21].”