Defect formation in the early universe
Astrophysics
2007-05-23 v2
Abstract
Topological defects are common in many everyday systems. In general, they appear if a symmetry is broken at a rapid phase transition. In this article, I explain why it is believed that they should have also been formed in the early universe and how that would have happened. If topological defects are found, this will provide a way to study observationally the first fractions of a second after the Big Bang, but their apparent absence can also tell us many things about the early universe.
Keywords
Cite
@article{arxiv.astro-ph/0307387,
title = {Defect formation in the early universe},
author = {A. Rajantie},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:astro-ph/0307387},
year = {2007}
}
Comments
26 pages, 10 figures. Updated to match the version published in Contemporary Physics (http://taylorandfrancis.metapress.com/link.asp?id=dcvj45hv41kr7xf7)