Master Seminar Eric Spreen

Title:

On a variational principle for Newton-Cartan Gravity

Abstract:

It is well known that Newton-Cartan Gravity can be obtained by applying a gauging procedure to the Bargmann Algebra. However, there is still no action known for this theory. We review how these gauging procedures work, and investigate through the use of Inönü-Wigner contractions and Lie algebra expansions why such an action eludes is. These procedures hint at a fundamental inability to produce invariant terms containing the field corresponding to the central generator of the Bargmann Algebra, giving us a direction in which to search for a proof of inexistence for the Newton-Cartan Action.