Related papers: CMB constraints on cosmic strings and superstrings
Cosmic strings provide a radically different paradigm for the formation of structure to the prevailing inflationary one. They afford some extra technical complications: for example, the calculation of the power spectrum of matter and…
I report on recent numerical simulations of the simplest field theory with cosmic string solutions, the Abelian Higgs model. We find that random networks of string quickly converge to a scaling solution in which the network scale length…
We have searched the 1st-year WMAP W-Band CMB anisotropy map for evidence of cosmic strings. We have set a limit of $\delta = 8 \pi G \mu / c^2 < 8.2 \times 10^{-6}$ at 95% CL for statistical search for a significant number of strings in…
Cosmic strings of the GUT scale, generically formed during the SSB of supersymmetric hybrid inflation, are compatible with the most recent CMB data. The strong constraints on the allowed cosmic strings contribution to the measured…
We explore constraints on dark energy and modified gravity with forecast 21cm intensity mapping measurements using the Effective Field Theory approach. We construct a realistic mock data set forecasting a low redshift 21cm signal power…
Cosmic strings in the early universe have received revived interest in recent years. In this paper we derive these structures as topological defects from singular distributions of the quintessence field of dark energy. Our emphasis is…
A metastable cosmic-string network is a generic consequence of many grand unified theories (GUTs) when combined with cosmic inflation. Metastable cosmic strings are not topologically stable, but decay on cosmic time scales due to pair…
A novel mechanism for the production of a cosmic network of fundamental superstrings based on a time-varying string tension has been recently proposed in the context of a kinating background driven by the volume modulus of string…
Superconducting cosmic strings emit electromagnetic waves between the times of recombination and reionization. Hence, they have an effect on the global 21cm signal. We compute the resulting absorption features, focusing on strings with…
The existence of cusps on non-periodic strings ending on D-branes is demonstrated and the conditions, for which such cusps are generic, are derived. The dynamics of F-, D-string and FD-string junctions are investigated. It is shown that…
Extensions to the $\Lambda\textrm{CDM}$ model prior to recombination can modify the growth of perturbations around radiation-matter equality, leaving a distinct signature in the matter power spectrum. Upcoming large-scale structure surveys…
If the dark energy is modelled as a relativistic elastic solid then the standard CDM and $\Lambda$CDM models, as well as lattice configurations of cosmic strings or domain walls, are points in the two-dimensional parameter space $(w,c_{\rm…
We study CMB constraints on a model with a cosmological constant and a fraction of dark matter non-minimally coupled to a massless scalar field. In this scenario, there is an extra gravity-like fifth force which can affect the evolution of…
We study the impact of kinks on the cosmic microwave background (CMB) anisotropies generated by cosmic string networks. To do so, we extend the Unconnected Segment Model to describe the stress-energy tensor of a network of cosmic strings…
Cosmic strings are a type of cosmic defect formed by a symmetry-breaking phase transition in the early universe. Individual strings would have gathered to build a network, and their dynamical motion would induce scalar--, vector-- and…
The unique, conical spacetime created by cosmic strings brings about distinctive gravitational lensing phenomena. The variety of these distinctive phenomena is increased when the strings have non-trivial mutual interactions. In particular,…
The dynamics of string junctions and their influence on the evolution of cosmic superstring networks are studied in full detail. We review kinematic constraints for colliding strings in a Friedmann-Lema\^itre-Robertson-Walker background and…
Cosmic strings are predicted by many field-theory models, and may have been formed at a symmetry-breaking transition early in the history of the universe, such as that associated with grand unification. They could have important…
In a simple reanalysis of the KKLMMT scenario, we argue that the slow roll condition in the D3-anti-D3-brane inflationary scenario in superstring theory requires no more than a moderate tuning. The cosmic string tension is very sensitive to…
We analyze cosmic superstring models in light of NANOGrav 15-year pulsar timing data. A good fit is found for a string tension $G \mu \sim 10^{-12} - 10^{-11}$ and a string intercommutation probability $p \sim 10^{-3} - 10^{-1}$.…