Slow-roll inflation with a Gauss-Bonnet correction
Abstract
We consider slow-roll inflation for a single scalar field with an arbitrary potential and an arbitrary nonminimal coupling to the Gauss-Bonnet term. By introducing a combined hierarchy of Hubble and Gauss-Bonnet flow functions, we analytically derive the power spectra of scalar and tensor perturbations. The standard consistency relation between the tensor-to-scalar ratio and the spectral index of tensor perturbations is broken. We apply this formalism to a specific model with a monomial potential and an inverse monomial Gauss-Bonnet coupling and constrain it by the 7-year Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe data. The Gauss-Bonnet term with a positive (or negative) coupling may lead to a reduction (or enhancement) of the tensor-to-scalar ratio and hence may revive the quartic potential ruled out by recent cosmological data.
Cite
@article{arxiv.1001.1897,
title = {Slow-roll inflation with a Gauss-Bonnet correction},
author = {Zong-Kuan Guo and Dominik J. Schwarz},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:1001.1897},
year = {2014}
}
Comments
7 pages, 2 figures, RevTeX, references added, published version