Related papers: Testing Inflation with Large Scale Structure: Conn…
Here we review the present status of modelling of and searching for primordial non-Gaussianity of cosmological perturbations. After introducing the models for non-Gaussianity generation during inflation, we discuss the search for…
In this paper we skim the true phenomenological requirements behind the concept of inflationary squeezing. We argue that all that is required is that at horizon re-entry the fluctuations form standing waves with the correct temporal phase…
We propose a new mechanism to generate density perturbations in inflationary models. Spatial fluctuations in the decay rate of the inflaton field to ordinary matter lead to fluctuations in the reheating temperature. We argue that in most…
Dissipative effects appear in many early-Universe scenarios, yet their universal observational signatures and systematic confrontation with data remain largely unexplored. We employ the Open Effective Field Theory of Inflation (Open EFToI)…
We show in this paper that it is possible to attain very high, {\it including observable}, values for the level of non-gaussianity f_{NL} associated with the bispectrum B_\zeta of the primordial curvature perturbation \zeta, in a subclass…
Cosmological local observables are at best statistically determined by the fundamental theory describing inflation. When the scalar inflaton is coupled uniformly to a collection of subdominant massless gauge vectors, rotational invariance…
In a series of five lectures I review inflationary cosmology. I begin with a description of the initial conditions problems of the Friedmann-Robertson-Walker (FRW) cosmology and then explain how inflation, an early period of accelerated…
We review the prospects for detecting tensor modes generated during inflation by CMB polarization experiments and by searching for a stochastic gravitational wave background with laser interferometers in space. We tackle the following two…
In this article we discuss the role of current and future CMB measurements in pinning down the model of inflation responsible for the generation of primordial curvature perturbations. By considering a parameterization of the effective field…
This is a review of particle-theory models of inflation, and of their predictions for the primordial density perturbation that is thought to be the origin of structure in the Universe. It contains mini-reviews of the relevant observational…
We suggest here a mechanism for the seeding of the primordial density fluctuations. We point out that a process like reheating at the end of inflation will inevitably generate perturbations, even on superhorizon scales, by the local…
We develop a cosmological model where primordial inflation is driven by a 'solid', defined as a system of three derivatively coupled scalar fields obeying certain symmetries and spontaneously breaking a certain subgroup of these. The…
We have studied modulated inflation that generates curvature perturbation from light-field fluctuation. As discussed in previous works, even if the fluctuation of the inflaton itself does not generate the curvature perturbation at the…
The recent observations from CMB have imposed a very stringent upper-limit on the tensor/scalar ratio $r$ of inflation models, $r < 0.064$, which indicates that the primordial gravitational waves (PGW), even though possible to be detected,…
We review conceptual aspects of inflationary scenarios able to produce primordial black holes, by amplifying the size of curvature fluctuations to the level required for triggering black hole formation. We identify general mechanisms to do…
Cosmological perturbations, originating in the quantum fluctuations of the fields that drive inflation, are observed to be nearly scale invariant at the largest scales. At smaller scales, however, perturbations are not severely constrained…
Although Cosmic Microwave Background and Large Scale Structure probe the largest scales of our universe with ever increasing precision, our knowledge about the smaller scales is still very limited other than the bounds on Primordial Black…
Inflation occurring at energy densities less than (10$^{14}$ GeV)$^4$ produces tensor perturbations too small to be measured by cosmological surveys. However, we show that it is possible to probe low scale inflation by measuring the mass of…
Primordial oscillatory features in the power spectrum of curvature perturbations are sensitive probes of the dynamics of the early Universe and can provide insights beyond the standard inflationary scenario. While these features have been…
We show that inflationary cosmology may be used to test the statistical predictions of quantum theory at very short distances and at very early times. Hidden-variables theories, such as the pilot-wave theory of de Broglie and Bohm, allow…