arXiv subjects

Sebastián Nájera

Publications and source records attributed to Sebastián Nájera.

12 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

Gravitational entropy in Petrov Type I spacetimes

The gravitational entropy proposal of Clifton, Ellis and Tavakol (CET) is based on an effective energy momentum tensor formed by the algebraic decomposition of the 4th order Bel-Robinson tensor. So far the application of the CET proposal has been limited to spacetimes of Petrov types D and N for which this algebraic decomposition is unique. To address this limitation we examine in detail the effective energy momentum tensors that result from the algebraic decomposition of the Bel-Robinson tensor in Petrov type I spacetimes. As a test case we apply these results to the Szekeres models of class II, a Petrov type I analytic solution.

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arXiv2026

Peculiar velocity fields from analytic solutions of General Relativity

Peculiar velocities are analyzed through cosmological perturbations in the Newtonian longitudinal gauge characterized by irrotational shear-free congruences in an Eulerian frame. We show that non-trivial peculiar velocity fields can be generated through Lorentzian boosts in the non-relativistic limit, where the Eulerian frame is obtained from analytic solutions of Einstein's equations sourced by an irrotational shear-free fluid with nonzero energy flux. This approach provides a physically viable interpretation of these analytic solutions, which (in general) admit no isometries, thus allowing, in principle, for modeling time and space varying 3-dimensional fields of peculiar velocities that can be contrasted with observational data on our local cosmography. As a ``proof of concept'' we examine the peculiar velocities of varying dark matter and dark energy perfect fluids with respect to the CMB frame using a simple, spherically symmetric particular solution. The resulting peculiar velocities are qualitatively compatible with observational data on the CMB dipole.

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arXiv2025

Revisiting the gravitational "arrow of time"

We address a long-standing misperception on the gravitational ``arrow of time'', a proposal by Penrose (also known as the ``Weyl-curvature hypothesis") that associates structure formation along timelike directions in which Weyl-curvature scalars become dominant over Ricci scalars. A counterexample of this hypothesis was found by Bonnor on a class of exact solutions describing heat conducting spheres collapsing in a Vaidya background. We show that this result does not hold in the same class of solutions considered as physically viable near FLRW cosmological models, with the heat conduction vector interpreted as a peculiar velocity field. We also discuss the similarities and differences between the gravitational ``arrow of time'' and the gravitational entropy formalism of Clifton, Ellis and Tavakol.

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arXiv2025

Gravitational entropy of fluids with energy flux

We examine gravitational entropy growth within the formalism of Clifton, Ellis and Tavakol (CET) applied to a class of spherically symmetric exact solutions whose source is a shear-free fluid with energy flux in a comoving frame. By considering these solutions as potential cosmological models, we update previous literature that considered them only as restricted toy models of radiating spheres collapsing in a Vaidya background. In the present paper we examine the integrability of the CET entropy form in connection with Einstein's equations in the fluid flow approach, proving as well that all expanding configurations comply with the growth of CET gravitational entropy. Finally, we examine the connection between the CET gravitational entropy and the notion of a gravitational ``arrow of time'' based on the ratio of Weyl to Ricci curvature. Some of the solutions also provide potentially useful and viable inhomogeneous generalizations of FLRW models, thus suggesting an appealing potential for applications to current cosmological research.

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arXiv2024

Response to a critique of "Cotton Gravity"

We address in this article the criticism in a recently submitted article by Clement and Noiucer (arXiv:2312.17662 [gr-qc]) on "Cotton Gravity" (CG), a gravity theory alternative to General Relativity. These authors claim that CG is "not predictive" for producing "too many" spherically symmetric vacuum solutions, while taking the Bianchi I vacuum as test case they argue that geometric constraint on the Cotton tensor lead to an undetermined problem, concluding in the end that CG "is not a physical theory". We provide arguments showing that this critique is incorrect and misrepresents the theory.

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arXiv2023

Fab-Four cosmography to tackle the Hubble tension

In the context of the Fab-Four theory of gravity in a Friedmann-Lemaître-Robertson-Walker background, in this work we use the cosmography approach to study a particular self-tuning filter solution focused on a zero-curvature fixed point to study the $H_0$ tension. In this scheme, the equations restrict the universe's evolution to certain scenarios, including radiation-like expansion, matter-like expansion, and late-time acceleration. Furthermore, we build the cosmographic series of the Fab-Four theory to obtain the kinematic parameters as the Hubble constant $H_0$ and the deceleration parameter $q_0$ for all the scenarios mentioned. Finally, we compare our results to find that it is possible to alleviate the current discrepancy on $H_0$ by considering specific requirements on the free parameters of the Fab-Four theory through a self-tuning filter.

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arXiv2022

Inhomogeneous solutions in $f(T,B)$ gravity

In this paper we explore the possibility to find exact solutions for Teleparallel Gravity (TG) of the type of spherically symmetric Lema\^ıtre-Tolman-Bondi (LTB) dust models. We apply to the LTB metric the formalism of Teleparallel Gravity in its extension to $f(T,B)$ models, which can be seen it as the analagous from the Schwarzschild solution in General Relativity. An exact LTB solution is obtained which is compatible with a specific $f(T,B)$ model whose observational constraints are cosmological viable in a standard spatially flat Robertson-Walker geometry.

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arXiv2021

On Negative Mass Cosmology in General Relativity

In this Letter we present strong arguments in favour of thoroughly revising the negative mass cosmology (NMC), which has been proposed as a simple alternative explanation of dark energy and dark matter effects, within the framework of General Relativity. We show that there are various physical predictions in this model which require fine-tuning in order to make them compatible with current cosmological surveys. In this way, the original motivation of the NMC model becomes obscured due to the imposition of fine-tuned unknown variables. We conclude that a more rigorous theoretical treatment is needed in order to make the NMC a viable cosmological model.

gr-qc↗

arXiv2021

The first non-static inhomogeneous exact solution in $f(T,B)$ gravity

We examine in this paper the possibility of finding exact solutions for Teleparallel Gravity (TG) of the type of spherically symmetric Lema\^ıtre-Tolman-Bondi (LTB) dust models. We apply to the LTB metric, as obtained from the Schwarzschild solution in General Relativity, the formalism of Teleparallel Gravity in its extension to $f(T,B)$ models. An exact LTB solution is obtained that is compatible with a specific $f(T,B)$ model that seems to be appropriate to fit observations when applied to standard spatially flat Robertson-Walker geometry.

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arXiv2021

Non-comoving Cold Dark Matter in a $Λ$CDM background

We examine the evolution of peculiar velocities of cold dark matter (CDM) in localized arrays of inhomogeneous cosmic structures in a $Λ$CDM background that can be identified as a frame comoving with the Cosmic Microwave (CMB). These arrays are constructed by smoothly matching to this cosmological background regions of Szekeres-II models whose source is an imperfect fluid reinterpreted as non-comoving dust, keeping only first order terms in $v/c$. Considering a single Szekeres-II region matched along two comoving interfaces to a $Λ$CDM background, the magnitudes of peculiar velocities within this region are compatible with values reported in the literature, while the present day Hubble expansion scalar differs from that of the $Λ$CDM background value by a 10\% factor, a result that might provide useful information to the ongoing debate on the $H_0$ tension. While the models cannot describe the virialization process, we show through a representative example that structures of galactic cluster mass reach the onset of this process at redshifts around $z\sim 3$.

gr-qc↗

arXiv2020

Pancakes as opposed to Swiss Cheese

We examine a novel class of toy models of cosmological inhomogeneities by smoothly matching along a suitable hypersurface an arbitrary number of sections of "quasi flat" inhomogeous and anisotropic Szekeres-II models to sections of any spatially flat cosmology that can be described by the Robertson-Waker metric (including de Sitter, anti de Sitter and Minkowski spacetimes). The resulting "pancake" models are quasi-flat analogues to the well known spherical "Swiss-cheese" models found in the literature. Since Szekeres-II models can be, in general, compatible with a wide range of sources (dissipative fluids, mixtures of non-comoving fluids, mixtures of fluids with scalar or magnetic fields or gravitational waves), the pancake configurations we present allow for a description of a wide collection of localized sources embedded in a Robertson-Waker geometry. We provide various simple examples of arbitrary numbers of Szekeres-II regions (whose sources are comoving dust and energy flux interpreted as a field of peculiar velocities) matched with Einstein de Sitter, $Λ$CDM and de Sitter backgrounds. We also prove that the Szekeres-II regions can be rigorously regarded as "exact" perturbations on a background defined by the matching discussed above. We believe that these models can be useful to test ideas on averaging and backreaction and on the effect of inhomogeneities on cosmic evolution and observations.

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arXiv2018

Geometric and physical properties of closed ever expanding dust models

Current observations suggest that our Universe is not incompatible with a small positive spatial curvature that can be associated with rest frames having a "closed" standard topology. We examine a toy model generalisation of the $Λ$CDM model in the form of ever expanding Lemaître-Tolman-Bondi (LTB) models with positive spatial curvature. It is well known that such models with $Λ=0$ exhibit a thin layer distribution at the turning values of the area distance that must be studied through the Israel-Lanczos formalism. We find that this distributional source exhibits an unphysical behaviour for large cosmic times and its presence can be detected observationally. However, these unphysical features can always be avoided by assuming $Λ>0$. While these LTB models are very simplified, we believe that these results provide a simple argument favouring the assumption of a nonzero positive cosmological constant in cosmological models.

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