Constraining the Noncommutative Spectral Action via Astrophysical Observations

Abstract

The noncommutative spectral action extends our familiar notion of commutative spaces, using the data encoded in a spectral triple on an almost commutative space. Varying a rather simple action, one can derive all of the standard model of particle physics in this setting, in addition to a modified version of Einstein-Hilbert gravity. Thus, noncommutative geometry provides a geometric interpretation of particle physics coupled to curvature. In this letter we use observations of pulsar timings, assuming that no deviation from General Relativity has been observed, to constrain the gravitational sector of this theory. Thus, we directly constrain noncommutative geometry, a potential grand unified theory of physics, via astrophysical observations. Whilst the bounds on the coupling constants remain rather weak, they are comparable to existing bounds on deviations from General Relativity in other settings and are likely to be further constrained by future observations.

5 pages; slightly shorter version to match the one will appear in Phys. Rev. Lett

References in corpus (3)

• Tests of general relativity from timing the double pulsar
• Measurement of Orbital Decay in the Double Neutron Star Binary PSR B2127+11C
• Gravitational-radiation losses from the pulsar-white-dwarf binary PSR J1141-6545

Cited by in corpus (6)

• Static Solutions for 4th order gravity
• Effective Gravitational Wave Stress-energy Tensor in Alternative Theories of Gravity
• Gravitational Waves in the Spectral Action of Noncommutative Geometry
• Inflation with a Weyl term, or ghosts at work
• Restricting Fourth Order Gravity via Cosmology
• Cosmological consequences of the noncommutative spectral geometry as an approach to unification