Regular solutions to higher order curvature Einstein--Yang-Mills systems in higher dimensions

Abstract

We study regular, static, spherically symmetric solutions of Yang-Mills theories employing higher order invariants of the field strength coupled to gravity in $d$ dimensions. We consider models with only two such invariants characterised by integers $p$ and $q$. These models depend on one dimensionless parameter $\alpha$ leading to one-parameter families of regular solutions, obtainable by numerical solution of the corresponding boundary value problem. Much emphasis is put on an analytical understanding of the numerical results.