Related papers: Erratum: Statistical anisotropy in the inflationar…
We consider a scenario in which primordial scalar perturbations are generated when complex conformal scalar field rolls down its negative quartic potential. Initially, these are the perturbations of the phase of this field; they are…
We consider the spectrum of primordial fluctuations produced by inflationary models where the inflaton potential is the sum of two exponential terms. A wide range of spectra result, with the only constraint being that the scalar spectrum…
We investigate the possibility that a heavy scalar field, whose mass exceeds the Hubble scale during inflation, could leave non-negligible signatures in the Cosmic Microwave Background (CMB) temperature anisotropy power spectrum through the…
Recent measurements by the {\it Planck} experiment of the power spectrum of temperature anisotropies in the cosmic microwave background radiation (CMB) reveal a deficit of power in low multipoles compared to the predictions from best-fit…
Spectrum of density perturbations in the Universe generated from quantum-gravitational fluctuations in slow-roll-over inflationary scenarios with the Brans-Dicke gravity is calculated. It is shown that after inflation the isocurvature mode…
Isentropic and isocurvature axion inflationary perturbations are studied in detail. If isocurvature perturbations are present, COBE requires the inflationary Hubble constant to be rather small, $H_{I} \stackrel{<}{\sim} 10^{12}$GeV,…
Contaldi et al. [1] have suggested that an initial period of kinetic energy domination in single field inflation may explain the lack of CMB power at large angular scales. We note that in this situation it is natural that there also be a…
We explore the possibility of describing our universe with a singularity--free, closed, spatially homogeneous and isotropic cosmological model, using only general relativity and a suitable equation of state which produces an inflationary…
This article provides an introductory review of inflation and cosmological perturbation theory. I begin by motivating the need for an epoch of inflation during the early stages of the radiation dominated era, and describe how inflation is…
We study both the background evolution and cosmological perturbations of anisotropic inflationary models supported by coupled scalar and vector fields. The models we study preserve the U(1) gauge symmetry associated with the vector field,…
One-loop correction to the power spectrum in generic single-field inflation is calculated by using standard perturbation theory. Because of the enhancement inversely proportional to the observed red tilt of the spectral index of curvature…
We study inflation in a random multifield potential, using techniques developed by Marsh et al. The potential is a function of a large number of fields, and we choose parameters so that inflation only occurs in regions where the potential…
Recently, we have shown that scalar spectra with lower power on large scales and certain other features naturally occur in {\it punctuated inflation}, i.e. the scenario wherein a brief period of rapid roll is sandwiched between two stages…
The spectral index of scalar perturbations is an important observable that allows us to learn about inflationary physics. In particular, a detection of a significant deviation from a constant spectral index could enable us to rule out the…
We revisit the stochastic effects in the model of anisotropic inflation containing a $U(1)$ gauge field. We obtain the Langevin equations for the inflaton and gauge fields perturbations and solve them analytically. We show that if the…
We study the generation of primordial perturbations in a (single-field) slow-roll inflationary universe. In momentum space, these (Gaussian) perturbations are characterized by a zero mean and a non-zero variance $\Delta^2(k, t)$. However,…
We show that there are inflationary models for which perturbations in the energy momentum tensor, which are of second order in the scalar field, cannot be neglected. We first specify the conditions under which the usual first order…
We show that the anisotropies in the spectrum of gravitational waves induced by scalar modes after the end of inflation in canonical, single-field models are completely determined by the tilt of the scalar and tensor power spectra. The…
Recently in hep-ph/0605035 and hep-ph/0608138, we have shown that primordial inflation can be embedded within the Minimal Supersymmetric Standard Model, while providing the right amplitude for the density perturbations and a tilted spectrum…
We assay how inflationary models whose properties are dominated by the dynamics of a single scalar field are constrained by cosmic microwave background (CMB) data from the Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe (WMAP). We classify…