Related papers: Varying-Alpha Cosmologies with Potentials

We calculate bounds on the variation of the fine structure constant at the time of primordial nucleosynthesis and at the time of neutral hydrogen formation. We use these bounds and other bounds from the late universe to test Bekenstein…

We investigate the cosmological consequences of a simple theory in which the electric charge $e$ is allowed to vary. The theory is locally gauge and Lorentz invariant, and satisfies general covariance. We find that in this theory the fine…

Light scalar fields very naturally appear in modern cosmological models, affecting such parameters of Standard Model as electromagnetic fine structure constant $\alpha$, dimensionless ratios of electron or quark mass to the QCD scale,…

In this work we analyze the spatial and time variation of the fine structure constant (\alpha) upon the theoretical framework developed by Bekenstein [1]. We have computed the field \psi related to \alpha at first order of the weak field…

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…

We determine the behaviour of a time-varying fine structure 'constant' $\alpha (t)$ during the early and late phases of universes dominated by the kinetic energy of changing $\alpha (t)$, radiation, dust, curvature, and lambda,…

The spectrograph ESPRESSO recently obtained a limit on the variation of the fine-structure constant, $\alpha$, through measurements along the line of sight of a bright quasar with a precision of $1.36$ ppm at $1\sigma$ level. This imposes…

There are indications from the study of quasar absorption spectra that the fine structure constant $\alpha$ may have been measurably smaller for redshifts $z>2.$ Analyses of other data ($^{149}$Sm fission rate for the Oklo natural reactor,…

There is a growing interest in astrophysical tests of the stability of dimensionless fundamental couplings, such as the fine-structure constant $\alpha$, as an optimal probe of new physics. The imminent arrival of the ESPRESSO spectrograph…

I review recent constraints on and claimed detections of a time-varying fine-structure constant $\alpha$. Our results are consistent with no variation in $\alpha$ from the epoch of recombination to the present day, and restrict any such…

Based on the idea that the components of a cosmological metric may be determined by the total gravitational potential of the universe, the scalar field $\phi=1/G$ in the Jordan-Brans-Dicke (JBD) theory is introduced as evolving with the…

We argue that models in which an observable variation of the fine structure constant is explained by motion of a cosmic scalar field, are not stable under renormalization, and require massive fine tuning that cannot be explained by any…

We review properties of cosmological theories for the variation of the fine structure 'constant'. We highlight some general features of the cosmological models that exist in these theories with reference to recent quasar data that are…

We consider a long range scalar force that mainly couples to dark matter and unstable Standard Model states, like the muon, with tiny strength. Probing this type of force would present a challenge to observations. We point out that the…

Dynamical scalar fields in an effective four-dimensional field theory are naturally expected to couple to the rest of the theory's degrees of freedom, unless some new symmetry is postulated to suppress these couplings. In particular, a…

We demonstrate that massive fields, such as dark matter, can directly produce a cosmological evolution of the fundamental constants of Nature. We show that a scalar or pseudoscalar (axion-like) dark matter field $\phi$, which forms a…

We study the cosmology of a general scalar field and barotropic fluid during the early stage of a brane-world where the Friedmann constraint is dominated by the square of the energy density. Assuming both the scalar field and fluid are…

We briefly review the recent experimental results on possible variations of the fine structure constant $\alpha$ on the cosmological time scale and its position dependence. We outline the theoretical grounds for the assumption that $\alpha$…

The fine-structure constant, $\alpha$, controls the strength of the electromagnetic interaction. There are extensions of the standard model in which $\alpha$ is dynamical on cosmological length and time-scales. The physics of the cosmic…

Motivated by reported claims of the measurements of a variation of the fine structure constant $\alpha$ we consider a theory where the electric charge, and consequently $\alpha$, is not a constant but depends on the Ricci scalar $R$. %We…