000168758 001__ 168758
000168758 005__ 20260217214839.0
000168758 0247_ $$2doi$$a10.1007/JHEP02(2026)020
000168758 0248_ $$2sideral$$a148134
000168758 037__ $$aART-2026-148134
000168758 041__ $$aeng
000168758 100__ $$0(orcid)0000-0003-3669-6241$$aAsorey, Manuel$$uUniversidad de Zaragoza
000168758 245__ $$aReflection positivity in a higher-derivative model with physical bound states of ghosts
000168758 260__ $$c2026
000168758 5060_ $$aAccess copy available to the general public$$fUnrestricted
000168758 5203_ $$aThe inclusion of higher derivatives is a necessary condition for a renormalizable or superrenormalizable local theory of quantum gravity. On the other hand, higher derivatives lead to classical instabilities and a loss of unitarity at the quantum level. A standard way to detect such issues is by examining the reflection positivity condition and the existence of a Källén-Lehmann spectral representation for the two-point function. We demonstrate that these requirements for a consistent quantum theory are satisfied in a theory we have recently proposed. This theory is based on a six-derivative scalar field action featuring a pair of complex-mass ghost fields that form a bound state. Our results support the interpretation that physical observables can emerge from ghost dynamics in a consistent and unitary framework.
000168758 536__ $$9info:eu-repo/grantAgreement/ES/DGA-FSE/E21-17R$$9info:eu-repo/grantAgreement/ES/MICINN/PGC2022-126078NB-C21
000168758 540__ $$9info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess$$aby$$uhttps://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/deed.es
000168758 655_4 $$ainfo:eu-repo/semantics/article$$vinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion
000168758 700__ $$aKrein, Gastão
000168758 700__ $$aPardina, Miguel$$uUniversidad de Zaragoza
000168758 700__ $$aShapiro, Ilya L.
000168758 7102_ $$12004$$2405$$aUniversidad de Zaragoza$$bDpto. Física Teórica$$cÁrea Física Teórica
000168758 773__ $$g2026, 20 (2026), [14 pp.]$$pJ. high energy phys.$$tJournal of High Energy Physics$$x1126-6708
000168758 8564_ $$s299317$$uhttps://zaguan.unizar.es/record/168758/files/texto_completo.pdf$$yVersión publicada
000168758 8564_ $$s1467233$$uhttps://zaguan.unizar.es/record/168758/files/texto_completo.jpg?subformat=icon$$xicon$$yVersión publicada
000168758 909CO $$ooai:zaguan.unizar.es:168758$$particulos$$pdriver
000168758 951__ $$a2026-02-17-20:15:03
000168758 980__ $$aARTICLE