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We propose a novel inflationary scenario in string theory in which the inflaton field is a 'Wilson line' degree of freedom in the worldvolume of a probe Dp-brane, in a warped flux compactification. Kinetic terms for Wilson line fields on…
We investigate how super-Planckian axions can arise when type IIB 3-form flux is used to restrict a two-axion field space to a one-dimensional winding trajectory. If one does not attempt to address notoriously complicated issues like Kahler…
The eta problem is one of the most significant obstacles to building a successful inflationary model in string theory. Planck mass suppressed corrections to the inflaton potential generally lead to inflaton masses of order the Hubble scale…
We investigate a new mechanism for realizing slow roll inflation in string theory, based on the dynamics of p anti-D3 branes in a class of mildly warped flux compactifications. Attracted to the bottom of a warped conifold throat, the…
Generically, the gravitational-wave or tensor-mode contribution to the primordial curvature spectrum of inflation is tiny if the field-range of the inflaton is much smaller than the Planck scale. We show that this pessimistic conclusion is…
We study an effective four-dimensional theory with an action with two scalar fields minimally coupled to gravity, and with a matter action which couples to the two scalar fields via an overall field-dependent coefficient in the action. Such…
Multiple axions form a landscape in the presence of various shift symmetry breaking terms. Eternal inflation populates the axion landscape, continuously creating new universes by bubble nucleation. Slow-roll inflation takes place after the…
In this note we show that models of natural inflation based on closed string axions are incompatible with the weak gravity conjecture (WGC). Specifically, we use T-duality in order to map the bounds on the charge-to-mass ratio of particles…
We compare the simplest realistic brane inflationary model to recent cosmological data, including WMAP 3-year cosmic microwave background (CMB) results, Sloan Digital Sky Survey luminous red galaxies (SDSS LRG) power spectrum data and…
We study the cosmological evolution of the volume moduli in a class of recently proposed Inflationary Universe models arising out of Type IIB string theory, where a number of the moduli fields have been stabilised through flux…
We show that in multi-stage axion monodromy inflation an interruption near the end of the penultimate stage can lead to a spike in the gravitational wave background. These gravitational waves are in the frequency range and with an amplitude…
We revisit models of natural inflation and show that the single-field effective theory described by the potential $V(a)\sim \cos\frac{a}{f}$ breaks down as the inflaton $a$ makes large-field excursions, even for values of $f$ smaller than…
Intersecting D-brane models and their T-dual magnetic compactifications yield attractive models of particle physics where magnetic flux plays a twofold role, being the source of fermion chirality as well as supersymmetry breaking. A…
We investigate a new way of realizing a period of cosmological inflation in the context of brane gas cosmology. It is argued that a gas of co-dimension one branes, out of thermal equilibrium with the rest of the matter, has an equation of…
We propose a model of inflation in the framework of brane cosmology driven by background supergravity. Starting from bulk supergravity we construct the inflaton potential on the brane and employ it to investigate for the consequences to…
We analyze a distinctive mechanism for inflation in which particle production slows down a scalar field on a steep potential, and show how it descends from angular moduli in string compactifications. The analysis of density perturbations --…
On compactification from higher dimensions, a single free massive scalar field gives rise to a set of effective four-dimensional scalar fields, each with a different mass. These can cooperate to drive a period of inflation known as assisted…
Usual inflation is realized with a slow rolling scalar field minimally coupled to gravity. In contrast, we consider dynamics of a scalar with a flat effective potential, conformally coupled to gravity. Surprisingly, it contains an attractor…
We study the slow-roll inflationary dynamics in a self-gravitating induced gravity braneworld model with bulk cosmological constant. For E \gg M_{5}^{3}/M^{2}_{2} we find important corrections to the four-dimensional Friedmann equation…
We quantitatively estimate the leading higher derivative corrections to ${\mathcal{N}}=1$ supergravity derived from IIB string compactifications and study how they may affect moduli stabilisation and LVS inflation models. Using the…