Related papers: Circumventing the eta problem in building an infla…
Considerable and ongoing effort is made to identify promising scalar field candidates in string theory to drive a cosmological period of inflation. At stake is the possibility that fundamental string parameters could be encoded in…
In this paper the focus is on inflationary dynamics in the context of Einstein Gauss-Bonnet gravitational theories. We investigate the implications of the slow-roll condition on the slow-roll indices and we investigate how the inflationary…
We analyze string-theoretic large-field inflation in the regime of spontaneously-broken supergravity with conventional moduli stabilization by fluxes and non-perturbative effects. The main ingredient is a shift-symmetric Kahler potential,…
Starobinsky inflation is currently one of the best models concerning agreement with cosmological data. Despite this observational success, it is still lacking a robust embedding into a UV complete theory. Previous efforts to derive…
Some classes of inflationary models naturally introduce two distinct metrics/frames, and their equivalence in terms of observables has often been put in question. D-brane inflation proposes candidates for an inflaton embedded in the string…
We embed the supersymmetric standard model of hybrid inflation based on the next-to-minimal superpotential term $\lambda NH_uH_d$ supplemented by an inflaton term $\kappa \phi N^2$, into an extra-dimensional framework, in which all the…
In the large extra dimensional braneworld inflation, Friedmann equation is modified to include a quadratic term in energy density with an additional parameter $\lambda$ called brane tension in addition to the usual linear term. The high…
Successful inflationary models should (i) describe the data well; (ii) arise generically from sensible UV completions; (iii) be insensitive to detailed fine-tunings of parameters and (iv) make interesting new predictions. We argue that a…
We consider quantum corrections to a recently obtained perturbative form of Starobinsky model to extract information about the initial conditions of the universe leading to cosmological inflation. Integrating out graviton modes, we find…
Natural inflation relies on the existence of an axion decay constant which is super-Planckian. In string theory only sub-Planckian axion decay constants have been found in any controlled regime. However in field theory it is possible to…
Linking the slow-roll scenario and the Dirac-Born-Infeld scenario of ultra-relativistic roll (where, thanks to the warp factor, the inflaton moves slowly even with an ultra-relativistic Lorentz factor), we find that the KKLMMT D3/anti-D3…
We explore the possibility that inflation is driven by supersymmetry breaking with the superpartner of the goldstino (sgoldstino) playing the role of the inflaton. Moreover, we impose an R-symmetry that allows to satisfy easily the…
The problems of attempting inflationary model-building in a theory containing a dilaton are explained. In particular, I study the shape of the dilaton potential today and during inflation, based on a weakly-coupled heterotic string model…
Many models of supersymmetry breaking involve particles with weak scale mass and Planck mass suppressed couplings. Coherent production of such particles in the early universe destroys the successful predictions of nucleosynthesis. We show…
[Abridged] As is well known, in order to generate magnetic fields of observed amplitudes during inflation, the conformal invariance of the electromagnetic field has to be broken by coupling it either to the inflaton or to the scalar…
Inflation generally assumes a field with nonzero potential that leads to inflationary expansion happening at arbitrarily early times. We demonstrate potentially observable consequences of inflation with a finite initial time in a model in…
The leading order dynamics of the type IIB Large Volume Scenario is characterised by the interplay between $\alpha'$ and non-perturbative effects which fix the overall volume and all local blow-up modes leaving (in general) several flat…
There is an observational indication of extragalactic magnetic fields. No known astrophysical process can explain the origin of such large scale magnetic fields, which motivates us to look for their origin in primordial inflation. By…
We reconsider the toy-model of topological inflation, based on the R*4-modified gravity. By using its equivalence to the certain scalar-tensor gravity model in four space-time dimensions, we compute the inflaton scalar potential and…
We present a model for quintessential inflation using a string modulus for the inflaton - quintessence field. The scalar potential of our model is based on generic non-perturbative potentials arising in flux compactifications. We assume an…