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It is shown that the Lorentz invariant $f(T)$ gravity, defined by the coframe-connection-multiplier form of the Lagrangian, can be gauge-fixed to the pure coframe form. After clarifying basic aspects of the problem in the Lagrangian formalism, a more detailed analysis of this gauge equivalence is given relying on the Dirac Hamiltonian approach.

In the literature on $f(T)$ gravity, the status of local Lorentz invariance and the number of physical degrees of freedom have been controversial issues. Relying on a detailed Hamiltonian analysis, we show that there are several scenarios describing how local Lorentz invariance can be broken, but in the generic case, the number of physical degrees of freedom is found to be $N^*=5$; in $D$ dimensions, this number is $N^*=D(D-3)/2+(D-1)$. As expected, the theory is vulnerable to having problematical propagating modes. We compare our results with those existing in the literature. As a byproduct of our analysis, the diffeomorphysm invariance is explicitly confirmed., Comment: LaTeX, 32 pages; v4: Small but important changes in Abstract and subsections 3.3 and 6.2

We present an English translation of a third 1918 paper by Felix Klein which follows up on his earlier work., Comment: 30 pages

We present an English translation of a second 1918 paper by Felix Klein which follows up on his earlier work., Comment: 20 pages

We present an English translation of a 1918 paper by Felix Klein., Comment: 17 pages

The specification of energy for gravitating systems has been an unsettled issue since Einstein proposed his pseudotensor. It is now understood that energy-momentum is \emph{quasi-local} (associated with a closed 2-surface). Here we consider quasi-local proposals (including pseudotensors) in the Lagrangian-Noether-Hamiltonian formulations. There are two ambiguities: (i) there are many possible expressions, (ii) they depend on some non-dynamical structure, e.g., a reference frame. The Hamiltonian approach gives a handle on both problems. The Hamiltonian perspective helped us to make a remarkable discovery: with an isometric Minkowski reference a large class of expressions---namely all those that agree with the Einstein pseudotensor's Freud superpotential to linear order---give a common quasi-local energy value. Moreover, with a best-matched reference on the boundary this is the Wang-Yau mass value., Comment: 14 pages, accepted by Gen Rel Grav, selected as an Editor's Choice

The energy of gravitating systems has been an issue since Einstein proposed general relativity: considered to be ill defined, having no proper local density. Energy-momentum is now regarded as \emph{quasi-local} (associated with a closed 2-surface). We consider the pseudotensor and quasi-local proposals in the Lagrangian-Noether-Hamiltonian formulations. There are two ambiguities: (i) many expressions, (ii) each depends on some non-dynamical structure, e.g., a reference frame. The Hamiltonian approach gives a handle on both problems. Our remarkable discovery is that with a 4D isometric Minkowski reference a large class of expressions---those that agree with the Einstein pseudotensor's Freud superpotential to linear order---give a common quasi-local energy value. With a best-matched reference on the boundary this value is the non-negative Wang-Yau mass., Comment: 7 pages, Honorable Mention in the 2018 Essay Competition of the Gravity Research Foundation

Gravity, and the puzzle regarding its energy, can be understood from a gauge theory perspective. Gravity, i.e., dynamical spacetime geometry, can be considered as a local gauge theory of the symmetry group of Minkowski spacetime: the Poincare group. The dynamical potentials of the Poincare gauge theory of gravity are the frame and the metric-compatible connection. The spacetime geometry has in general both curvature and torsion. Einstein's general relativity theory is a special case. Both local gauge freedom and energy are clarified via the Hamiltonian formulation. We have developed a covariant Hamiltonian formulation. The Hamiltonian boundary term gives covariant expressions for the quasi-local energy, momentum and angular momentum. A key feature is the necessity to choose on the boundary a non-dynamic reference. With a best matched reference one gets good quasi-local energy-momentum and angular momentum values., Comment: Chapter 6 in "Memorial Volume for Yi-Shi Duan", eds. M.-L. Ge, R.-G. Cai and Y.-X. Liu (World Scientific, 2018) pp. 169-187

We investigate the Lagrange multiplier formulation of teleparallel theories, including f(T) gravity, in which the connection is not set to zero a priori and compare it with the pure frame theory. We show explicitly that the two formulations are equivalent, in the sense that the dynamical equations have the same content. One consequence is that the manifestly local Lorentz invariant f(T) theory cannot be expected to be free of pathologies, which were previously found to plague f(T) gravity formulated in the usual pure frame approach., Comment: 6 pages, version accepted for publication

For the benefit of the readers of this journal, the editors requested that we prepare a brief review of the history of the development of the theory, the experimental attempts to detect them, and the recent direct observations of gravitational waves (GWs). The theoretical ideas and disputes beginning with Einstein in 1916 regarding the existence and nature of GWs and the extent to which one can rely on the electromagnetic analogy, especially the controversies regarding the quadrupole formula and whether GWs carry energy, are discussed. The theoretical conclusions eventually received strong observational support from the binary pulsar. This provided compelling, although indirect, evidence for GWs carrying away energy--as predicted by the quadrupole formula. On the direct detection experimental side, Weber started more than 50 years ago. In 1966, his bar for GW detection reached a strain sensitivity of a few times 10^-16. His announcement of coincident signals (now considered spurious) stimulated many experimental efforts from room temperature resonant masses to cryogenic detectors and laser-interferometers. Now there are km-sized interferometric detectors (LIGO Hanford, LIGO Livingston, Virgo and KAGRA). Advanced LIGO first reached a strain sensitivity of the order of 10^-22. During their first 130 days of observation (O1 run), with the aid of templates generated by numerical relativity, they did make the first detections: two 5-sigma GW events and one likely event. Besides earth-based GW detectors, the drag-free sensitivity of the LISA Pathfinder has already reached to the LISA goal level, paving the road for space GW detectors. Over the whole GW spectrum (from aHz to THz) there are efforts for detection, notably the very-low-frequency band (pulsar timing array [PTA], 300 pHz-100 nHz) and the extremely-low (Hubble)-frequency (cosmic microwave background [CMB] experiment, 1 aHz-10 fHz)., Comment: revised version to appear in Chinese Journal of Physics

The Hamiltonian for dynamic geometry generates the evolution of a spatial region along a vector field. It includes a boundary term which determines both the value of the Hamiltonian and the boundary conditions. The value gives the quasi-local quantities: energy-momentum, angular-momentum and center-of-mass. The boundary term depends not only on the dynamical variables but also on their reference values; the latter determine the ground state (having vanishing quasi-local quantities). For our preferred boundary term for Einstein's GR we propose 4D isometric matching and extremizing the energy to determine the reference metric and connection values., Comment: 6 pages, contribution to the Proceedings of the Second LeCosPA Symposium "Everything about Gravity", Taipei, 14-18 Dec., 2015

The evolution of a generally covariant theory is under-determined. One hundred years ago such dynamics had never before been considered; its ramifications were perplexing, its future important role for all the fundamental interactions under the name gauge principle could not be foreseen. We recount some history regarding Einstein, Hilbert, Klein and Noether and the novel features of gravitational energy that led to Noether's two theorems. Under-determined evolution is best revealed in the Hamiltonian formulation. We developed a covariant Hamiltonian formulation. The Hamiltonian boundary term gives covariant expressions for the quasi-local energy, momentum and angular momentum. Gravity can be considered as a gauge theory of the local Poincar\'e group. The dynamical potentials of the Poincar\'e gauge theory of gravity are the frame and the connection. The spacetime geometry has in general both curvature and torsion. Torsion naturally couples to spin; it could have a significant magnitude and yet not be noticed, except on a cosmological scale where it could have significant effects., Comment: 10 pages, contribution to the Proceedings of the Second LeCosPA Symposium "Everything about Gravity", Taipei, 14-18 Dec., 2015

For the quadratic Poincar\'e gauge theory of gravity (PG) we consider the FLRW cosmologies using an isotropic Bianchi representation. Here the considered cosmologies are for the general case: all the even and odd parity terms of the quadratic PG with their respective scalar and pseudoscalar parameters are allowed with no \emph{a priori} restrictions on their values. With the aid of a manifestly homogeneous and isotropic representation, an effective Lagrangian gives the second order dynamical equations for the gauge potentials. An equivalent set of first order equations for the observables is presented. The generic behavior of physical solutions is discussed and illustrated using numerical simulations., Comment: 22 pages

Our topic concerns a long standing puzzle: the energy of gravitating systems. More precisely we want to consider, for gravitating systems, how to best describe energy-momentum and angular momentum/center-of-mass momentum (CoMM). It is known that these quantities cannot be given by a local density. The modern understanding is that (i) they are quasi-local (associated with a closed 2-surface), (ii) they have no unique formula, (iii) they have no reference frame independent description. In the first part of this work we review some early history, much of it not so well known, on the subject of gravitational energy in Einstein's general relativity (GR), noting especially Noether's contribution. In the second part we review (including some new results) much of our covariant Hamiltonian formalism and apply it to Poincar\'e gauge theories (GR is a special case). The key point is that the Hamiltonian boundary term has two roles, it determines the quasi-local quantities, and, furthermore it determines the boundary conditions for the dynamical variables. Energy-momentum and angular momentum/CoMM are associated with the geometric symmetries under Poincar\'e transformations. They are best described in a local Poincar\'e gauge theory. The type of spacetime that naturally has this symmetry is Riemann-Cartan spacetime, with a metric compatible connection having, in general, both curvature and torsion. Thus our expression for the energy-momentum of physical systems is obtained via our covariant Hamiltonian formulation applied to Poincar\'e gauge theories., Comment: This article is to appear in the Int J Mod Phys D and is to be published also in the book "One Hundred Years of General Relativity: From Genesis and Empirical Foundations to Gravitational Waves, Cosmology and Quantum Gravity," edited by Wei-Tou Ni (World Scientific, Singapore, 2015)

It was recently argued that f(T) gravity could inherit "remnant symmetry" from the full Lorentz group, despite the fact that the theory is not locally Lorentz invariant. Confusion has arisen regarding the implication of this result for the previous works, which established that f(T) gravity is pathological due to superluminal propagation, local acausality, and non-unique time evolution. We clarify that the existence of the "remnant group" does not rid the theory of these various problems, but instead strongly supports it., Comment: Fixed typo. Version accepted by PRD

The Hamiltonian for physical systems and dynamic geometry generates the evolution of a spatial region along a vector field. It includes a boundary term which not only determines the value of the Hamiltonian, but also, via the boundary term in the variation of the Hamiltonian, the boundary conditions. The value of the Hamiltonian comes from its boundary term; it gives the quasi-local quantities: energy-momentum and angular-momentum/center-of-mass. This boundary term depends not only on the dynamical variables but also on their reference values; these reference values determine the ground state---the state having vanishing quasi-local quantities. Here our concern is how to select on the two-boundary the reference values. To determine the "best matched" reference metric and connection values for our preferred boundary term for Einstein's general relativity, we propose on the boundary two-surface (i) \emph{four dimensional} isometric matching, and (ii) extremizing the value of the energy., Comment: 4 pages

The boundary term of the gravitational Hamiltonian can be used to give the values of the quasi-local quantities as long as one can provide a suitable evolution vector field and an appropriate reference. On the two-surface boundary of a region we have proposed using {\em four dimensional isometric matching} between the dynamic spacetime and the reference geometry along with energy extremization to find both the optimal reference matching and the appropriate quasi-Killing vectors. Here we consider the axisymmetric spacetime case. For the Kerr metric in particular we can explicitly solve the equations to find the best matched reference and quasi-Killing vectors. This leads to the exact expression for the quasi-local boundary term and the values of our optimal quasi-local energy and angular momentum., Comment: 19 pages, 1 figure

Teleparallel theories of gravity have a long history. They include a special case referred to as the Teleparallel Equivalent of General Relativity (TEGR, aka GR$_{\|}$). Recently this theory has been generalized to f(T) gravity. Tight constraints from observations suggest that f(T) gravity is not as robust as initially hoped. This might hint at hitherto undiscovered problems at the theoretical level. In this work, we point out that a generic f(T) theory can be expected to have certain problems including superluminal propagating modes, the presence of which can be revealed by using the characteristic equations that govern the dynamics in f(T) gravity and/or the Hamiltonian structure of the theory via Dirac constraint analysis. We use several examples from simpler gauge field theories to explain how such superluminal modes could arise. We also point out problems with the Cauchy development of a constant time hypersurface in FLRW spacetime in f(T) gravity. The time evolution from a FLRW (and as a special case, Minkowski spacetime) initial condition is not unique., Comment: Version accepted by PRD

The Hamiltonian for dynamic geometry generates the evolution of a spatial region along a vector field. It includes a boundary term which determines both the value of the Hamiltonian and the boundary conditions. The value gives the quasi-local quantities: energy-momentum, angular-momentum/center-of-mass. The boundary term depends not only on the dynamical variables but also on their reference values; the latter determine the ground state (having vanishing quasi-local quantities). For our preferred boundary term for Einstein's GR we propose 4D isometric matching and extremizing the energy to determine the reference metric and connection values., Comment: submitted to the proceedings of the conference on Relativity and Gravitation: 100 Years after Einstein in Prague

We present two complementary approaches for determining the reference for the covariant Hamiltonian boundary term quasi-local energy and test them on spherically symmetric spacetimes. On the one hand, we isometrically match the 2-surface and extremize the energy. This can be done in two ways, which we call programs I (without constraint) and II (with additional constraints). On the other hand, we match the orthonormal 4-frames of the dynamic and the reference spacetimes. Then, if we further specify the observer by requiring the reference displacement to be the timelike Killing vector of the reference, the result is the same as program I, and the energy can be positive, zero, or even negative. If, instead, we require that the Lie derivatives of the two-area along the displacement vector in both the dynamic and reference spacetimes to be the same, the result is the same as program II, and it satisfies the usual criteria: the energies are non-negative and vanish only for Minkowski (or anti-de Sitter) spacetime., Comment: 16 pages, no figures

For a given timelike displacement vector the covariant Hamiltonian quasi-local energy expression requires a proper choice of reference spacetime. We propose a program for determining the reference by embedding a neighborhood of the two-sphere boundary in the dynamic spacetime into a Minkowski reference, so that the two sphere is embedded isometrically, and then extremizing the energy to determine the embedding variables. Applying this idea to Schwarzschild spacetime, we found that for each given future timelike displacement vector our program gives a unique energy value. The static observer measures the maximal energy. Applied to the Friedmann-Lemaitre-Robertson-Walker spacetime, we find that the maximum energy value is nonnegative; the associated displacement vector is the unit dual mean curvature vector, and the expansion of the two-sphere boundary matches that of its reference image. For these spherically symmetric cases the reference determined by our program is equivalent to isometrically matching the geometry at the two-sphere boundary and taking the displacement vector to be orthogonal to the spacelike constant coordinate time hypersurface, like the timelike Killing vector of the Minkowski reference., Comment: 12 pages

We are investigating the dynamics of a new Poincar\'e gauge theory of gravity model, which has cross coupling between the spin-0$^+$ and spin-0$^-$ modes. To this end we here consider a very appropriate situation---homogeneous-isotropic cosmologies---which is relatively simple, and yet all the modes have non-trivial dynamics which reveals physically interesting and possibly observable results. More specifically we consider manifestly isotropic Bianchi class A cosmologies; for this case we find an effective Lagrangian and Hamiltonian for the dynamical system. The Lagrange equations for these models lead to a set of first order equations that are compatible with those found for the FLRW models and provide a foundation for further investigations. Typical numerical evolution of these equations shows the expected effects of the cross parity coupling., Comment: 13 pages, 2 figures

The boundary conditions that exclude zeros of the solutions of the Witten equation (and hence guarantee the existence of a 3-frame satisfying the so-called special orthonormal frame gauge conditions) are investigated. We determine the general form of the conformally invariant boundary conditions for the Witten equation, and find the boundary conditions that characterize the constant and the conformally constant spinor fields among the solutions of the Witten equations on compact domains in extrinsically and intrinsically flat, and on maximal, intrinsically globally conformally flat spacelike hypersurfaces, respectively. We also provide a number of exact solutions of the Witten equation with various boundary conditions (both at infinity and on inner or outer boundaries) that single out nowhere vanishing spinor fields on the flat, non-extreme Reissner--Nordstr\"om and Brill--Lindquist data sets. Our examples show that there is an interplay between the boundary conditions, the global topology of the hypersurface and the existence/non-existence of zeros of the solutions of the Witten equation., Comment: 23 pages, typos corrected, final version, accepted in Class. Quantum Grav

The Poincar\'e gauge theory of gravity has a metric compatible connection with independent dynamics that is reflected in the torsion and curvature. The theory allows two good propagating spin-0 modes. Dynamical investigations using a simple expanding cosmological model found that the oscillation of the 0$^+$ mode could account for an accelerating expansion similar to that presently observed. The model has been extended to include a $0^{-}$ mode and more recently cross parity couplings. We investigate the dynamics of this model in a situation which is simple, non-trivial, and yet may give physically interesting results that might be observable. We consider homogeneous cosmologies, more specifically, isotropic Bianchi class A models. We find an effective Lagrangian for our dynamical system, a system of first order equations, and present some typical dynamical evolution., Comment: 8 pages, 1 figures, submitted to IARD 2010 Conference Proceedings in {\em Journal of Physics: Conference Series}, eds. L. Horwitz and M. Land (2011)

A quasi-local energy for Einstein's general relativity is defined by the value of the preferred boundary term in the covariant Hamiltonian formalism. The boundary term depends upon a choice of reference and a time-like displacement vector field (which can be associated with an observer) on the boundary of the region. Here we analyze the spherical symmetric cases. For the obvious analytic choice of reference based on the metric components, we find that this technique gives the same quasi-local energy values using several standard coordinate systems and yet can give different values in some other coordinate systems. For the homogeneous-isotropic cosmologies, the energy can be non-positive, and one case which is actually flat space has a negative energy. As an alternative, we introduce a way to determine the choice of both the reference and displacement by extremizing the energy. This procedure gives the same value for the energy in different coordinate systems for the Schwarzschild space, and a non-negative value for the cosmological models, with zero energy for the dynamic cosmology which is actually Minkowski space. The timelike displacement vector comes out to be the dual mean curvature vector of the two-boundary., Comment: 21 pages; revised version to appear in CQG

We propose a cosmological model in the framework of the Poincar\'e gauge theory of gravity (PG). The gravitational Lagrangian is quadratic in curvature and torsion. In our specific model, the Lagrangian contains (i) the curvature scalar $R$ and the curvature pseudo-scalar $X$ linearly and quadratically (including an $RX$ term) and (ii) pieces quadratic in the torsion {\it vector} $\cal V$ and the torsion {\it axial} vector $\cal A$ (including a ${\cal V}{\cal A}$ term). We show generally that in quadratic PG models we have nearly the same number of parity conserving terms (`world') and of parity violating terms (`shadow world'). This offers new perspectives in cosmology for the coupling of gravity to matter and antimatter. Our specific model generalizes the fairly realistic `torsion cosmologies' of Shie-Nester-Yo (2008) and Chen et al.\ (2009). With a Friedman type ansatz for an orthonormal coframe and a Lorentz connection, we derive the two field equations of PG in an explicit form and discuss their general structure in detail. In particular, the second field equation can be reduced to first order ordinary differential equations for the curvature pieces $R(t)$ and $X(t)$. Including these along with certain relations obtained from the first field equation and curvature definitions, we present a first order system of equations suitable for numerical evaluation. This is deferred to the second, numerical part of this paper., Comment: Latex computerscript, 25 pages; mistakes corrected, references added, notation and title slightly changed; accepted by Phys. Rev. D

We have proposed a program for determining the reference for the quasi-local energy defined in the covariant Hamiltonian formalism. Our program has been tested by applying it to the spherically symmetric spacetimes. With respect to different observers we found that the quasi-local energy can be positive, zero, or even negative. The observer measuring the maximum energy was identified; the associated energy is positive for both the Schwarzschild and the Friedmann-Lema\^{i}tre-Robertson-Walker spacetimes., Comment: 4 pages

The Poincare gauge theory of gravity has a Lorentz connection with both torsion and curvature. For this theory two good propagating connection modes, carrying spin-$0^+$ and spin-$0^-$, have been found. The possible effects of the spin-$0^+$ mode in cosmology were investigated in a previous work by our group; there it was found that the $0^+$ mode could account for the presently accelerating universe. Here, we extend the analysis to also include the spin-$0^-$ mode. The resulting cosmological model has three degrees of freedom. We present both the Lagrangian and Hamiltonian form of the dynamic equations for this model, find the late-time normal modes, and present some numerical evolution cases. In the late time asymptotic regime the two dynamic modes decouple, and the acceleration of the Universe oscillates due to the spin-$0^+$ mode., Comment: 27 pages, 5 figures, the final version for the publication in JCAP

The values for the gravitational energy-momentum density, given by the famous classical pseudotensors: Einstein, Papapetrou, Landau-Lifshitz, Bergmann-Thompson, Goldberg, M{\o}ller, and Weinberg, in the small region limit are found to lowest non-vanishing order in normal coordinates. All except M{\o}ller's have the zeroth order material limit required by the equivalence principle. However for small vacuum regions we find that {\it none} of these classical holonomic pseudotensors satisfies the criterion of being proportional to the Bel-Robinson tensor. Generalizing an earlier work which had identified one case, we found another independent linear combination satisfying this requirement--and hence a one parameter set of linear combinations of the classical pseudotensors with this desirable property., Comment: 13 pages

We construct an infinite number of new holonomic quasi-local gravitational energy-momentum density pseudotensors with good limits asymptotically and in small regions, both materially and in vacuum. For small vacuum regions they are all a positive multiple of the Bel-Robinson tensor and consequently have positive energy., Comment: 4 pages

The gravitational energy-momentum within a small region as determined by two tetrad-teleparallel expressions is evaluated with the aid of an orthonormal frame adapted to Riemann normal coordinates. We find that the gauge current "tensor" does enjoy the highly desired and rare property of being a positive multiple of the Bel-Robinson tensor, whereas M{\o}ller's expression does not., Comment: 11 pages, a major revision of gr-qc/0612061 and will be published in the Chin. J. Phys

Investigations of the dynamic modes of the Poincare gauge theory of gravity found only two good propagating torsion modes; they are effectively a scalar and a pseudoscalar. Cosmology affords a natural situation where one might see observational effects of these modes. Here we consider only the ``scalar torsion'' mode. This mode has certain distinctive and interesting qualities. In particular this type of torsion does not interact directly with any known matter and it allows a critical non-zero value for the affine scalar curvature. Via numerical evolution of the coupled nonlinear equations we show that this mode can contribute an oscillating aspect to the expansion rate of the Universe. From the examination of specific cases of the parameters and initial conditions we show that for suitable ranges of the parameters the dynamic ``scalar torsion'' model can display features similar to those of the presently observed accelerating universe., Comment: 16 pages, 4 figures, accepted by PRD

An energy for the homogeneous cosmological models is presented. More specifically, using an appropriate natural prescription, we find the energy within any region with any gravitational source for a large class of gravity theories--namely those with a tetrad description--for all 9 Bianchi types. Our energy is given by the value of the Hamiltonian with homogeneous boundary conditions; this value vanishes for all regions in all Bianchi class A models, and it does not vanish for any class B model. This is so not only for Einstein's general relativity but, moreover, for the whole 3-parameter class of tetrad-teleparallel theories. For the physically favored one parameter subclass, which includes the teleparallel equivalent of Einstein's theory as an important special case, the energy for all class B models is, contrary to expectation, negative., Comment: 11 pages, reformated with minor changes

First we briefly review our covariant Hamiltonian approach to quasi-local energy, noting that the Hamiltonian-boundary-term quasi-local energy expressions depend on the chosen boundary conditions and reference configuration. Then we present the quasi-local energy values resulting from the formalism applied to homogeneous Bianchi cosmologies. Finally we consider the quasi-local energies of the FRW cosmologies. Our results do not agree with certain widely accepted quasi-local criteria., Comment: Contributed to International Symposium on Cosmology and Particle Astrophysics (CosPA 2006), Taipei, Taiwan, 15-17 Nov 2006

For the Poincare gauge theory of gravity we consider the dynamical scalar torsion mode in a cosmological context. We explore in particular the possibility of using dynamical torsion to explain the current state of the accelerating Universe. With certain suitable sets of chosen parameters, this model can give a (qualitatively) proper description of the current universe without a cosmological constant, and the universe described is oscillating with a period of the Hubble time., Comment: 13 pages, 12 eps figures, an invited talk to 2006 International Symposium on Cosmology and Particle Astrophysics, Taipei, Taiwan, 15-17 Nov 2006

Alternatives to the usual general relativity (GR) Riemannian framework include Riemann-Cartan and teleparallel geometry. The ``teleparallel equivalent of GR" (TEGR, aka GR${}_{||}$) has certain virtues, however there have been allegations of serious source coupling limitations. Now it is quite straightforward to show that the coupled dynamical field equations of Einstein's GR with any source can be accurately represented in terms of any other connection, in particular teleparallel geometry. Using an argument similar to one used long ago to show the "effective equivalence" between GR and the Einstein-Cartan theory, we construct the teleparallel action which is equivalent to a given Riemanian one; thereby finding the ``effectively equivalent" coupling principle for all sources, including spinors. No auxiliary field is required. Can one decide which is the real "physical" geometry? Invoking the minimal coupling principle may give a unique answer., Comment: 5 pages

Moller's tetrad gravitational energy-momentum "tensor" is evaluated for a small vacuum region using an orthonormal frame adapted to Riemann normal coordinates. We find that it does satisfy the highly desired property of being a positive multiple of the Bel-Robinson tensor., Comment: 8 pages

We have studied the famous classical pseudotensors in the small region limit, both inside matter and in vacuum. A recent work [Deser et al.1999 CQG 16, 2815] had found one combination of the Einstein and Landau-Lifshitz expressions which yields the Bel-Robinson tensor in vacuum. Using similar methods we found another independent combination of the Bergmann-Thomson, Papapetrou and Weinberg pseudotensors with the same desired property. Moreover we have constructed an infinite number of additional new holonomic pseudotensors satisfying this important positive energy requirement, all seem quite artificial. On the other hand we found that Moller's 1961 tetrad-teleparallel energy-momentum expression naturally has this Bel-Robinson property., Comment: 5 pages. To appear in Proceedings of the 7th International Conference on Gravitation amnd Astrophysics

The Hamiltonian for a gravitating region includes a boundary term which determines not only the quasi-local values but also, via the boundary variation principle, the boundary conditions. Using our covariant Hamiltonian formalism, we found four particular quasi-local energy-momentum boundary term expressions; each corresponds to a physically distinct and geometrically clear boundary condition. Here, from a consideration of the asymptotics, we show how a fundamental Hamiltonian identity naturally leads to the associated quasi-local energy flux expressions. For electromagnetism one of the four is distinguished: the only one which is gauge invariant; it gives the familiar energy density and Poynting flux. For Einstein's general relativity two different boundary condition choices correspond to quasi-local expressions which asymptotically give the ADM energy, the Trautman-Bondi energy and, moreover, an associated energy flux (both outgoing and incoming). Again there is a distinguished expression: the one which is covariant., Comment: 12 pages, no figures, revtex4

The null infinity limit of the gravitational energy-momentum and energy flux determined by the covariant Hamiltonian quasi-local expressions is evaluated using the NP spin coefficients. The reference contribution is considered by three different embedding approaches. All of them give the expected Bondi energy and energy flux., Comment: 14 pages, accepted by Phys.Rev.D

Gravitating systems have no well-defined local energy-momentum density. Various quasilocal proposals have been made, however the center-of-mass moment (COM) has generally been overlooked. Asymptotically flat graviating systems have 10 total conserved quantities associated with the Poincar{\'e} symmetry at infinity. In addition to energy-momentum and angular momentum (associated with translations and rotations) there is the boost quantity: the COM. A complete quasilocal formulation should include this quantity. Getting good values for the COM is a fairly strict requirement, imposing the most restrictive fall off conditions on the variables. We take a covariant Hamiltonian approach, associating Hamiltonian boundary terms with quasilocal quantities and boundary conditions. Unlike several others, our {\it covariant symplectic} quasilocal expressions do have the proper asymptotic form for all 10 quantities., Comment: 4 pages, contribution to the 6th International Conference of Gravitation and Astrophysics, Seoul, 2003 (revised version)

Asymptotically flat gravitating systems have 10 conserved quantities, which lack proper local densities. It has been hoped that the teleparallel equivalent of Einstein's GR (TEGR, aka GR${}_{||}$) could solve this gravitational energy-momentum localization problem. Meanwhile a new idea: quasilocal quantities, has come into favor. The earlier quasilocal investigations focused on energy-momentum. Recently we considered quasilocal angular momentum for the teleparallel theory and found that the popular expression (unlike our ``covariant-symplectic'' one) gives the correct result only in a certain frame. We now report that the center-of-mass moment, which has largely been neglected, gives an even stronger requirement. We found (independent of the frame gauge) that our ``covariant symplectic'' Hamiltonian-boundary-term quasilocal expression succeeds for all the quasilocal quantities, while the usual expression cannot give the desired center-of-mass moment. We also conclude, contrary to hopes, that the teleparallel formulation appears to have no advantage over GR with regard to localization., Comment: 12 pages, to appear in the proceedings of the 10th Marcel Grossman meeting (Rio de Janeiro, 2003)

We first describe a class of spinor-curvature identities (SCI) which have gravitational applications. Then we sketch the topic of gravitational energy-momentum, its connection with Hamiltonian boundary terms and the issues of positivity and (quasi)localization. Using certain SCIs several spinor expressions for the Hamiltonian have been constructed. One SCI leads to the celebrated Witten positive energy proof and the Dougan-Mason quasilocalization. We found two other SCIs which give alternate positive energy proofs and quasilocalizations. In each case the spinor field has a different role. These neat expressions for gravitational energy-momentum have much appeal. However it seems that such spinor formulations just have no room for angular momentum; which leads us to doubt that spinor formulations can really correctly capture the elusive gravitational energy-momentum., Comment: references added, final version to appear in the Proceeding of the 6th Conference on Clifford Algebras and their Applications in Mathematical Physics (Cookeville, Tennessee, 20-25 May, 2002)

Energy-momentum (and angular momentum) for the Metric-Affine Gravity theory is considered from a Hamiltonian perspective (linked with the Noether approach). The important roles of the Hamiltonian boundary term and the many choices involved in its selection-which give rise to many different definitions-are emphasized. For each choice one obtains specific boundary conditions along with a value for the quasilocal, and (with suitable asymptotic behavior) total (Bondi and ADM) energy-momentum and angular momentum. Applications include the first law of black hole thermodynamics-which identifies a general expression for the entropy. Prospects for a positive energy proof are considered and quasilocal values for some solutions are presented., Comment: Submitted to the electronic proceedings of the Ninth Marcel Grossmann Meeting (Rome, 2-8 July, 2000)

In the Tetrad Representation of General Relativity, the energy-momentum expression, found by Moller in 1961, is a tensor wrt coordinate transformations but is not a tensor wrt local Lorentz frame rotations. This local Lorentz freedom is shown to be the same as the six parameter normalized spinor degrees of freedom in the Quadratic Spinor Representation of General Relativity. From the viewpoint of a gravitational field theory in flat space-time, these extra spinor degrees of freedom allow us to obtain a local energy-momentum density which is a true tensor over both coordinate and local Lorentz frame rotations., Comment: 9 pages. Proceedings of the Vigier III Symposium (August 21-25, 2000, U. C. Berkeley), Kluwer Academic, to be published

The various roles of boundary terms in the gravitational Lagrangian and Hamiltonian are explored. A symplectic Hamiltonian-boundary-term approach is ideally suited for a large class of quasilocal energy-momentum expressions for general relativity. This approach provides a physical interpretation for many of the well-known gravitational energy-momentum expressions including all of the pseudotensors, associating each with unique boundary conditions. From this perspective we find that the pseudotensors of Einstein and M{\o}ller (which is closely related to Komar's superpotential) are especially natural, but the latter has certain shortcomings. Among the infinite possibilities, we found that there are really only two Hamiltonian-boundary-term quasilocal expressions which correspond to {\em covariant} boundary conditions; they are respectively of the Dirichlet or Neumann type. Our Dirichlet expression coincides with the expression recently obtained by Katz and coworkers using Noether arguments and a fixed background. A modification of their argument yields our Neumann expression., Comment: 24 pages, REVTEX, no figures

Traditional approaches to energy-momentum localization led to reference frame dependent pseudotensors. The more modern idea is quasilocal energy-momentum. We take a Hamiltonian approach. The Hamiltonian boundary term gives not only the quasilocal values but also boundary conditions via the Hamiltonian variation boundary principle. Selecting a Hamiltonian boundary term involves several choices. We found that superpotentials can serve as Hamiltonian boundary terms, consequently pseudotensors are actually quasilocal and legitimate. Various Hamiltonian boundary term quasilocal expressions are considered including some famous pseudotensors, M{\o}ller's tetrad-teleparallel ``tensor'', Chen's covariant expressions, the expressions of Katz & coworkers, the expression of Brown & York, and some spinor expressions. We emphasize the need for identifying criteria for a good choice., Comment: 10 pages, no figures, uses mprocl.sty, to appear in the Proceeding of the 4th International Workshop on Gravitation and Astrophysics, Beijing, October, 1999

The Hamiltonian constraint formalism is used to obtain the first explicit complete analysis of non-trivial viable dynamic modes for the Poincar\'e gauge theory of gravity. Two modes with propagating spin-zero torsion are analyzed. The explicit form of the Hamiltonian is presented. All constraints are obtained and classified. The Lagrange multipliers are derived. It is shown that a massive spin-$0^-$ mode has normal dynamical propagation but the associated massless $0^-$ is pure gauge. The spin-$0^+$ mode investigated here is also viable in general. Both modes exhibit a simple type of ``constraint bifurcation'' for certain special field/parameter values., Comment: 28 pages, LaTex, submitted to International Journal of Modern Physics D