title: Constraining the noncommutative spectral action via astrophysical observations.
abstract: The noncommutative spectral action extends our familiar notion of commutative spaces, using the data encoded in a spectral triple on an almost commutative space. Varying a rather simple action, one can derive all of the standard model of particle physics in this setting, in addition to a modified version of Einstein-Hilbert gravity. In this Letter we use observations of pulsar timings, assuming that no deviation from general relativity has been observed, to constrain the gravitational sector of this theory. While the bounds on the coupling constants remain rather weak, they are comparable to existing bounds on deviations from general relativity in other settings and are likely to be further constrained by future observations.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Gravitation and the Cosmos, Penn State University, State College, Pennsylvania 16801, USA. nelson@gravity.psu.edu
authors.forename: William
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Nelson
authors.forename: Joseph
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Ochoa
authors.forename: Mairi
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Sakellariadou