Related papers: String Quantum Gravity, Lorentz-Invariance Violati…
Cosmic strings are topological defects which can be formed in GUT-scale phase transitions in the early universe. They are also predicted to form in the context of string theory. The main mechanism for a network of Nambu-Goto cosmic strings…
String cosmology aims at providing a reliable description of the very early Universe in the regime where standard-model physics is no longer appropriate, and where we can safely apply the basic ingredients of superstring models such as…
If the graviton possesses an arbitrarily small (but nonvanishing) mass, perturbation theory implies that cosmic strings have a nonzero Newtonian potential. Nevertheless in Einstein gravity, where the graviton is strictly massless, the…
In these lectures I discuss the possibility that superstrings of cosmic length might exist and be observable. I first review the original idea of cosmic strings arising as gauge theory solitons, and discuss in particular their network…
Einstein's General Relativity (GR) is the basis of modern astronomy and astrophysics. Testing the validity of basic assumptions of GR is important. In this work, we test a possible violation of the Weak Equivalence Principle (WEP), i.e.,…
We examine the spectrum of gravitational radiation emitted by a network of cosmic strings, with emphasis on the observational constraints and the opportunities for detection. The analysis improves over past work, as we use a…
Context: Strings and other alternative theories describing the quantum properties of space-time suggest that space-time could present a foamy structure and also that, in certain cases, quantum gravity (QG) may manifest at energies much…
String tension fundamentally determines the properties of strings; yet its value is often assigned arbitrarily, creating a fine-tuning problem. We describe a mechanism for dynamically generating string tension in a flat or almost flat…
The constancy of light speed is a basic assumption in Einstein's special relativity, and consequently the Lorentz invariance is a fundamental symmetry of space-time in modern physics. However, it is speculated that the speed of light…
Theories beyond general relativity (GR) modify the propagation of gravitational waves (GWs). In some, inhomogeneities (aka. gravitational lenses) allow interactions between the metric and additional fields to cause lens-induced…
Recently Kahniashivili et al (2006) presented a unified treatment for ultraviolet Lorentz violation (LV) testing through electromagnetic wave propagation in magnetised plasmas, based on dispersion and rotation measured data. Based on the…
I report recent studies on the evolution of perturbations in the context of the ``pre-big-bang" scenario typical of string cosmology, with emphasis on the formation of a stochastic background of relic photons and gravitons, and its possible…
We exhibit string contributions to the $\nd{S}$ matrix relating in- and out- state density matrices that do not factorize as a product of $S$ and $S^\dagger$ matrices. They are associated with valley trajectories between topological defects…
Lorentz invariance violation~(LIV) can change the threshold behavior predicted by special relativity and cause threshold anomalies which affect the propagation of cosmic photons. In this work, we focus on the threshold anomaly effect on…
String theory is canonically accompanied with a space-time interpretation which determines S-matrix-like observables, and connects to the standard physics at low energies in the guise of local effective field theory. Recently, we have…
Brane gas cosmology is a scenario inspired by string theory which proposes a simple resolution to the initial singularity problem and gives a dynamical explanation for the number of spatial dimensions of our universe. In this work we have…
The possibility is raised that the observed cosmological matter-antimatter asymmetry may reside in asymmetric space-time fluctuations and their interplay with the St\"ckelberg-Feynman interpretation of antimatter. The presented thesis also…
We examine variations in the equation of state of the cosmic string portion of the cosmological fluid which lead to perturbations of the background matter density. These fluctuations in the equation of state are due to variations in the…
Brane worlds are theories with extra spatial dimensions in which ordinary matter is localized on a (3+1) dimensional submanifold. Such theories could have interesting consequences for particle physics and gravitational physics. In this…
We search for possible time lags caused by quantum gravitational (QG) effects using gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) detected by INTEGRAL. The advantage of this satellite is that we have at our disposal the energy and arrival time of every detected…