Barbero-Immirzi connections and how to build them

Abstract

We introduce a covariant formulation of Barbero-Immirzi connections, which are used in Loop Quantum Gravity to describe gravity. We show that Barbero-Immirzi connections can be uniquely defined out of a given spin connection for any $(n+1)$-dimensional lorentzian manifold which is spin. A remarkable result is that the presence of a real Barbero-Immirzi parameter is a feature unique to the $4$-dimensional case.