Related papers: Turning Big Bang into Big Bounce: I. Classical Dyn…
If the spatial sections of the Universe are positively curved, extrapolating the inflationary stage backward in time inevitably leads to a classical bounce. This simple scenario, non-singular and free of exotic physics, deserves to be…
We present a detailed analysis of a quantum model for Loop Quantum Cosmology based on strict application of the Thiemann regularization algorithm for the Hamiltonian in Loop Quantum Gravity, extending the results presented previously in our…
Cosmology appears as the most promising way to test and constrain quantum gravity theories. Loop quantum gravity is among the most advanced attempts to perform a non-perturbative quantization of general relativity. Its cosmological…
We examine the cosmological sector of a gauge theory of gravity based on the SO(4,2) conformal group of Minkowski space. We allow for conventional matter coupled to the spacetime metric as well as matter coupled to the field that gauges…
The degree of freedom of the scalar field in scalar-tensor gravity is employed as "time" to deparametrize the Hamiltonian constraint of the theory. The deparametrized system is then nonperturbatively quantized by the approach of loop…
In order to account for the observable Universe, any comprehensive theory or model of cosmology must draw from many disciplines of physics, including gauge theories of strong and weak interactions, the hydrodynamics and microphysics of…
We study a five-dimensional cosmological model, which suggests that the universe bagan as a discontinuity in a (Higgs-type) scalar field, or alternatively as a conventional four-dimensional phase transition.
We consider the k=1 Friedman-Robertson-Walker (FRW) model within loop quantum cosmology, paying special attention to the existence of an ambiguity in the quantization process. In spatially non-flat anisotropic models such as Bianchi II and…
The big bounce singularity of a simple 5D cosmological model is studied. Contrary to the standard big bang space-time singularity, this big bounce singularity is found to be an event horizon at which the scale factor and the mass density of…
With a well-motivated extension of higher order holonomy corrections, the quantum theory of loop quantum cosmology (LQC) for the $k=0$ Friedmann-Robertson-Walker model (with a free massless scalar) is rigorously formulated. The analytical…
For bouncing cosmologies such as the ekpyrotic/cyclic scenarios we show that it is possible to make predictions for density perturbations which are independent of the details of the bouncing phase. This can be achieved, as in inflationary…
The effective dynamics of loop quantum gravity for marginally bound Lema\^itre-Tolman-Bondi spacetimes predict that the big-bang singularity is resolved and replaced by a cosmic bounce. Numerics show that these effective dynamics also…
We consider Brans-Dicke cosmology with cosmological constant with negative w parameter and an arbitrary (in general non-vanishing) scale factor at the Big Bang. The field equations describe the flat universe, current observational values…
We systematically study the preinflationary dynamics of the spatially flat Friedmann-Lemaitre-Robertson-Walker universe filled with a single scalar field that has the generalized $\alpha-$attractor potentials, in the framework of loop…
Following up an earlier suggestion of how the Tolman Entropy Conundrum (TEC) can be solved in a cyclic cosmology using the Come Back Empty (CBE) assumption with phantom dark energy, here we show how the same CBE strategy may work with a…
We argue that the anomalous power asymmetry observed in the cosmic microwave background (CMB) may have originated in a cosmic bounce preceding inflation. In loop quantum cosmology (LQC) the big bang singularity is generically replaced by a…
The exactly solvable quantum model of the homogeneous, isotropic and closed universe in the matter-energy production epoch is considered. It is assumed that the universe is originally filled with a uniform scalar field and a perfect fluid…
We study the bounce and cyclicity realization in the framework of new gravitational scalar-tensor theories. In these theories the Lagrangian contains the Ricci scalar and its first and second derivatives, in a specific combination that…
Lattice regularization of the theory of gravity provides a new possibility for study of the Big Bang problem. In the 4D lattice theories of gravity, the existence of a high-temperature phase is proved, which is characterized by the folding…
Process of formation of the universe with its further expansion in the first evolution stage is investigated in the framework of Friedmann-Robertson-Walker metrics on the basis of quantum model, where a new type of matter is introduced,…