Geometry of Multiflavor Galileon-Like Theories

Phys Rev Lett. 2018 Oct 26;121(17):171602. doi: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.121.171602.

Abstract

We use Lie-algebraic arguments to classify Lorentz-invariant theories of massless interacting scalars that feature coordinate-dependent redundant symmetries of the Galileon type. We show that such theories are determined, up to a set of low-energy effective couplings, by specifying an affine representation of the Lie algebra of physical, nonredundant internal symmetries and an invariant metric on its target space. This creates an infinite catalog of theories relevant for both cosmology and high-energy physics thanks to their special properties such as enhanced scaling of scattering amplitudes in the soft limit.