Brane effects on extra-dimensional scenarios:: a tale of two gravitons

We analyze the propagation of a scalar field in multidimensional theories which include kinetic corrections in the brane, as a prototype for gravitational interactions in a four-dimensional brane located in a (nearly) flat extra-dimensional bulk. We regularize the theory by introducing an infrared cutoff given by the size of the extra dimensions, R, and a physical ultraviolet cutoff of the order of the fundamental Planck scale in the higher-dimensional theory, M. We show that, having implemented cutoffs, the radius of the extra dimensions cannot be arbitrarily large for M greater than or similar to 1 TeV. Moreover, for finite radii, the gravitational effects localized on the brane can substantially alter the phenomenology of collider and/or table-top gravitational experiments. This phenomenology is dictated by the presence of a massless graviton, with standard couplings to the matter fields, and a massive graviton which couples to matter in a much stronger way. While graviton KK modes lighter than the massive graviton couple to matter in a standard way, the couplings to matter of the heavier KK modes are strongly suppressed. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.