The MOND limit from space-time scale invariance

Abstract

The MOND limit is shown to follow from a requirement of space-time scale invariance of the equations of motion for nonrelativistic, purely gravitational systems; i.e., invariance of the equations of motion under (t,r) goes to (qt,qr), in the limit a0 goes to infinity. It is suggested that this should replace the definition of the MOND limit based on the low-acceleration behavior of a Newtonian-MOND interpolating function. In this way, the salient, deep-MOND results--asymptotically flat rotation curves, the mass-rotational-speed relation (baryonic Tully-Fisher relation), the Faber-Jackson relation, etc.--follow from a symmetry principle. For example, asymptotic flatness of rotation curves reflects the fact that radii change under scaling, while velocities do not. I then comment on the interpretation of the deep-MOND limit as one of "zero mass": Rest masses, whose presence obstructs scaling symmetry, become negligible compared to the "phantom", dynamical masses--those that some would attribute to dark matter. Unlike the former masses, the latter transform in a way that is consistent with the symmetry. Finally, I discuss the putative MOND-cosmology connection in light of another, previously known symmetry of the deep-MOND limit. In particular, it is suggested that MOND is related to the asymptotic de Sitter geometry of our universe. It is conjectured, for example, that in an exact de Sitter cosmos, deep-MOND physics would exactly apply to local systems. I also point out, in this connection, the possible relevance of a de Sitter-conformal-field-theory (dS/CFT) duality.