Wormhole geometries in modified gravity

Abstract: In this thesis, we investigate traversable wormhole spacetimes within the context of a covariant generalization of Einstein's General Relativity, namely the energy-momentum squared gravity, denoted as $f\left(R,T_{ab}T^{ab}\right)$. Here, $R$ represents the Ricci scalar and $T_{ab}$ is the energy-momentum tensor. Specifically considering the linear form $f\left(R,T_{ab}T^{ab}\right)=R+\gamma T_{ab}T^{ab}$, we demonstrate the existence of numerous wormhole solutions, wherein the matter fields satisfy all energy conditions, these being the null, weak, strong, and dominant energy conditions. Remarkably, these solutions do not require fine-tuning of the free parameters inherent to the model. Given the complicated nature of the field equations, we develop an analytical recursive algorithm to derive these solutions. One limitation is that these solutions lack natural localization, necessitating then a matching with an external vacuum spacetime. To address this, we derive the junction conditions for the theory, establishing that any matching between two spacetimes must be smooth, i.e. without the presence of thin-shells at the boundary. Ultimately, applying these junction conditions allows us to match the interior wormhole spacetime with an exterior vacuum described by the Schwarzschild solution. Therefore, we obtain traversable, localized, static, and spherically symmetric wormhole solutions that satisfy all energy conditions across the entire spacetime range. Additionally, we demonstrate that the approach used in this study can be easily generalized to more complicated dependencies of the action on $T_{ab}T^{ab}$, provided there are no crossed terms between $R$ and $T_{ab}T^{ab}$.