A note on Gauge Theories Coupled to Gravity

Abstract

We analyze the bound on gauge couplings $e\ge m/m_p$, suggested by Arkani-Hamed et.al. We show this bound can be derived from simple semi-classical considerations and holds in spacetime dimensions greater than or equal to four. Non abelian gauge symmetries seem to satisfy the bound in a trivial manner. We comment on the case of discrete symmetries and close by performing some checks for the bound in higher dimensions in the context of string theory.

15 pages, 1 figure, Latex