Related papers: Phase transition in the fine structure constant
Dependence of transition frequencies on the fine structure constant $\alpha=e^2/\hbar c$ is calculated for several many-electron systems which are used or planned to be used in the laboratory search for the time variation of the fine…
The [O III] $\lambda\lambda\ 4960,5008$ emission lines in the optical spectra of galaxies and quasars have been widely used to investigate the possible variation of the fine-structure constant $\alpha$ over cosmic time. In this work, we…
First-order phase transitions exist in many models beyond the Standard Model and can generate detectable stochastic gravitational waves for a strong one. Using the cosmological observables in big bang nucleosynthesis and cosmic microwave…
The recent measurements of the Cosmic Microwave Background anisotropies at arcminute angular scales performed by the ACT and SPT experiments are probing the damping regime of CMB fluctuations. The analysis of these datasets unexpectedly…
We study the space-time evolution of the fine structure constant, $\alpha$, inside evolving spherical overdensities in a lambda-CDM Friedmann universe using the spherical infall model. We show that its value inside virialised regions will…
Detection of high-redshift absorption in the optical spectra of quasars have provided a powerful tool to measure spatial and temporal variations of physical ``constants'' in the Universe. It is demonstrated that high sensitivity to the…
Recent updated results of quasar spectra suggested a 3.9$\sigma$ significance of spatial variation of the fine-structure constant. Theoretically, it is important to examine whether the fine-structure constant, as a fundamental constant in…
Last year I talked at this meeting about a possible time dependence of the QCD coupling constant $\alpha_s$. This year I shall look into the problem once more, without fully repeating the arguments given last year. Astrophysical indications…
We extend our recent work on the effects of a time-varying fine-structure constant $\alpha$ in the cosmic microwave background, by providing a thorough analysis of the degeneracies between $\alpha$ and the other cosmological parameters, and…
The search for variation of the fundamental constants such as the fine structure constant $\alpha$ ($\alpha=e^2/\hbar c$) and the ratios of fundamental masses (e.g., electron to proton mass ratio $\mu=m_e/m_p$) is reviewed. Strong emphasis…
We have investigated some cosmological consequences of variation of the fine structure constant, $\alpha$, in the context of the Bekenstein-Sandvik-Barrow-Magueijo (BSBM) model. In this context, such a variation is attributed to electric…
In this paper we investigate a time-varying neutrino mass model, motivated by the mild tension between cosmic microwave background (CMB) measurements of the matter fluctuations and those obtained from low-redshift data. We modify the…
We revisit the epoch of cosmic speed-up characterized by the redshift of transition from a decelerated to an accelerated phase. This redshift is termed the transition redshift ($z_t$). We use the spatially Flat and Non-Flat variants of the…
Any variation of the fundamental physical constants, and more particularly of the fine structure constant, $\alpha$, or of the mass of the electron, $m_e$, would affect the recombination history of the Universe and cause an imprint on the…
At redshifts z_abs < 2, quasar absorption-line constraints on space-time variations in the fine-structure constant, alpha, rely on the comparison of MgII and FeII transition wavelengths. One potentially important uncertainty is the relative…
We present a class of models in which the coupling of the photon to an ultralight scalar field that has a time-dependent vacuum expectation value causes the fine structure constant to oscillate in time. The scalar field is assumed to…
We put bounds on the variation of the value of the fine structure constant $\alpha$, at the time of Big Bang nucleosynthesis. We study carefully all light elements up to $^7$Li. We correct a previous upper limit on $|\Delta \alpha /…
The fine-structure constant alpha approximately 1/137 is traditionally regarded as a fundamental dimensionless parameter. I argue instead that alpha is a scaled quantity that arises only where the structural scales contributed by classical…
We study inhomogeneous cosmological variations in the fine structure 'constant', $\alpha ,$ in Friedmann universes. Inhomogeneous motions of the scalar field driving changes in $\alpha $ display spatial oscillations that decrease in…
We study the $\Lambda(\alpha)$CDM models with $\Lambda(\alpha)$ being a function of the time-varying fine structure constant $\alpha$. We give a close look at the constraints on two specific $\Lambda(\alpha)$CDM models with one and two…