English

Polarizing Bubble Collisions

Cosmology and Nongalactic Astrophysics 2015-05-19 v2 High Energy Physics - Theory

Abstract

We predict the polarization of cosmic microwave background (CMB) photons that results from a cosmic bubble collision. The polarization is purely E-mode, symmetric around the axis pointing towards the collision bubble, and has several salient features in its radial dependence that can help distinguish it from a more conventional explanation for unusually cold or hot features in the CMB sky. The anomalous "cold spot" detected by the Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe (WMAP) satellite is a candidate for a feature produced by such a collision, and the Planck satellite and other proposed surveys will measure the polarization on it in the near future. The detection of such a collision would provide compelling evidence for the string theory landscape.

Keywords

Cite

@article{arxiv.1006.0832,
  title  = {Polarizing Bubble Collisions},
  author = {Bartlomiej Czech and Matthew Kleban and Klaus Larjo and Thomas S. Levi and Kris Sigurdson},
  journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:1006.0832},
  year   = {2015}
}

Comments

Published version. 15 pages, 8 figures

R2 v1 2026-06-21T15:31:58.074Z