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Luminosity-temperature relation as a probe for modified gravity

Antonino Del Popolo1,2,*, Saeed Fakhry3,†, and David F. Mota4,‡

  • *Contact author: antonino.delpopolo@unict.it
  • †Contact author: saeed.fakhry@uv.es
  • ‡Contact author: d.f.mota@astro.uio.no
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Phys. Rev. D 113, 063562 – Published 25 March, 2026

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/fq33-yts8

Abstract

We investigate the luminosity-temperature (L−T) relation of galaxy clusters as a probe for testing modified gravity (MG) theories, focusing on f(R) gravity and symmetron models. Using an improved semianalytic framework that incorporates angular momentum acquisition, dynamical friction, and shock heating within the modified punctuated equilibrium model, we compare predictions against hydrodynamical simulations and observational data. While massive clusters remain largely screened and follow standard Λ cold dark matter (ΛCDM) predictions, low-mass systems (kT≲1–2  keV) exhibit systematic deviations characterized by steeper L−T slopes in MG scenarios. Crucially, we demonstrate that these signatures cannot be mimicked by conventional astrophysical processes such as feedback or angular momentum effects, which primarily affect normalization rather than curvature. Our results establish the L−T relation as a robust diagnostic tool for distinguishing general relativity from screened MG theories, with the strongest discriminatory power emerging at group scales accessible to current and future x-ray surveys. Moreover, a normalized reduced χ2 analysis of the L−T relation shows that MG models provide significantly better agreement with observational data than ΛCDM, with several realizations achieving excellent fits while the ΛCDM model consistently performs worst.

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Phys. Rev. D 113, 063562– Published 25 March, 2026
  • Received 14 January 2026
  • Accepted 12 February 2026
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Published by the American Physical Society under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International license. Further distribution of this work must maintain attribution to the author(s) and the published article’s title, journal citation, and DOI.

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