Generalized Curvature-Matter Couplings in Modified Gravity
1
Department of Mathematics, University College London, Gower Street, London WC1E 6BT, UK
2
Centro de Astronomia e Astrofísica da Universidade de Lisboa, Campo Grande, Edifício C8 1749-016 Lisboa, Portugal
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Galaxies 2014, 2(3), 410-465; https://doi.org/10.3390/galaxies2030410
Received: 30 May 2014 / Revised: 7 July 2014 / Accepted: 8 July 2014 / Published: 28 July 2014
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Beyond Standard Gravity and Cosmology)
In this work, we review a plethora of modified theories of gravity with generalized curvature-matter couplings. The explicit nonminimal couplings, for instance, between an arbitrary function of the scalar curvature R and the Lagrangian density of matter, induces a non-vanishing covariant derivative of the energy-momentum tensor, implying non-geodesic motion and, consequently, leads to the appearance of an extra force. Applied to the cosmological context, these curvature-matter couplings lead to interesting phenomenology, where one can obtain a unified description of the cosmological epochs. We also consider the possibility that the behavior of the galactic flat rotation curves can be explained in the framework of the curvature-matter coupling models, where the extra terms in the gravitational field equations modify the equations of motion of test particles and induce a supplementary gravitational interaction. In addition to this, these models are extremely useful for describing dark energy-dark matter interactions and for explaining the late-time cosmic acceleration.
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Keywords:
modified gravity; curvature-matter couplings; cosmology; dark matter
This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License
MDPI and ACS Style
Harko, T.; Lobo, F.S.N. Generalized Curvature-Matter Couplings in Modified Gravity. Galaxies 2014, 2, 410-465. https://doi.org/10.3390/galaxies2030410
AMA Style
Harko T, Lobo FSN. Generalized Curvature-Matter Couplings in Modified Gravity. Galaxies. 2014; 2(3):410-465. https://doi.org/10.3390/galaxies2030410
Chicago/Turabian StyleHarko, Tiberiu; Lobo, Francisco S.N. 2014. "Generalized Curvature-Matter Couplings in Modified Gravity" Galaxies 2, no. 3: 410-465. https://doi.org/10.3390/galaxies2030410
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