Related papers: String Gas Cosmology: Progress and Problems
The inflationary paradigm provides a robust description of the peculiar initial conditions which are required for the success of the Hot Big Bang model of cosmology, as well as of the recent precision measurements of temperature…
The observed value of the Higgs mass indicates an instability of the Higgs scalar at large energy scales, and hence also at large field values. In the context of early universe cosmology, this is often considered to lead to problems. Here…
We consider the effects of graviton multiplet fields on transitions between string gas phases. Focusing on the dilaton field, we show that it may obstruct transitions between different thermodynamic phases of the string gas, because the…
This paper is concerned with string cosmology and the dynamics of multiple scalar fields in potentials that can become negative, and their features as (Early) Dark Energy models. Our point of departure is the "String Axiverse", a scenario…
The BFSS matrix model is a suggested non-perturbative definition of string theory. Starting from a thermal state of this matrix model, we show how space and time can emerge dynamically. Results from the IKKT matrix model indicate that the…
We discuss some aspects of string cosmology with an emphasis on the role played by the dilaton. A cosmological scenario based on the assumption that all spatial dimensions are periodic so that winding modes play an important role is…
We propose a new method for identifying new physics imprints on present observational data in cosmology whereby signatures of string theory are clearly distinguished from imprints of possible features on the inflaton potential. Our method…
The string-dominated universe locally resembles an open universe, and fits dynamical measures of power spectra, cluster abundances, redshift distortions, lensing constraints, luminosity and angular diameter distance relations and microwave…
We investigate decaying D-branes as the origin of the thermal string gas of string gas cosmology. We consider initial configurations of low-dimensional branes and argue that they can time evolve to thermal string gas. We find that there is…
Over the past decade it has become clear that fundamental strings are not the only fundamental degrees of freedom in string theory. D-branes are also part of the spectrum of fundamental states. In this paper we explore some possible effects…
We propose a mechanism to have a smooth transition from a pre-Big Bang phase to a standard cosmological phase. Such transition is driven by gravitational production of heavy massive string states that backreact on the geometry to stop the…
The Pre-Big Bang cosmology inspired generations of cosmologists in attempts to cure the initial Big Bang singularity using a fundamental length scale as proposed by String Theory. The existence of a phase of collapse/inflation with…
We study nonsingular cosmological scenarios in a general $D$-dimensional string effective action of the dilaton-modulus-axion system in the presence of the matter source. In the standard dilatonic Brans-Dicke parameter ($\omega=-1$) with…
These notes are intended as an introductory course for experimental particle physicists interested in the recent developments in astrophysics and cosmology. I will describe the standard Big Bang theory of the evolution of the universe, with…
Most current cosmological models of the very early universe are based on local point particle effective field theories coupled to gravity. I will discuss some conceptual limitations of this approach and argue that an improved description of…
From an observational perspective cosmology is today in excellent shape - advances in instrumentation and data processing have enabled us to study the universe in detail back to when the first galaxies formed, map the fluctuations in the…
D-branes, topological defects in string theory on which string endpoints can live, may give new insight into the understanding of the cosmological evolution of the Universe at early epochs. We analyze the dynamics of D-branes in curved…
In this work the most promising string cosmology models are re-viewed model by model in detail. These models are based on conceptsform string theory and heterotic M theory to construct possible scenar-ios for the beginning and the evolution…
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…
In a previous paper we proposed a new approach to the beginning of inflation -- a lingering universe. The universe begins in a lingering state with a nearly vanishing Hubble parameter. This calls into question the absolute age of the…