ETHER THEORY OF GRAVITATION: WHY AND HOW?
Mayeul Arminjon, Laboratoire “Sols, Solides, Structures, Risques” (CNRS & Universites de Grenoble), BP 53, F-38041 Grenoble cedex 9, France. Gravitation might make a preferred frame appear, and with it a clear space/time separation—the latter being, a priori, needed by quantum mechanics (QM) in curved space-time. Several models of gravitation with an ether are discussed: they assume metrical effects in an heterogeneous ether and/or a Lorentz-symmetry breaking. One scalar model, starting from a semi-heuristic view of gravity as a pressure force, is detailed. It has been developed to a complete theory including continuum dynamics, cosmology, and links with electromagnetism and QM. To test the theory, an asymptotic scheme of post-Newtonian approximation has been built. That version of the theory which is discussed here predicts an internal-structure effect, even at the point-particle limit. The same might happen also in general relativity (GR) in some gauges, if one would use a similar sc