Related papers: Constraints on small-field axion inflation
We show that an axionlike field coupled to a new confining gauge group can generate the primordial density perturbation in the post-inflation universe. The axion decay constant and strong coupling scale are uniquely determined by…
Banks and Dine have recently shown that the M theory naturally accommodates the Peccei-Quinn axion. Since the decay constant $F_a$ of the axion is large as $F_a \simeq 10^{15}-10^{16}$GeV, the halo axion is hardly detected in coming…
It is assumed in standard cosmology that the Universe underwent a period of inflation in its earliest phase, providing the seeds for structure formation through vacuum fluctuations of the inflaton scalar field. These fluctuations get…
We propose a new realization of axion monodromy inflation in which axion monodromy arises from torsional cycles in a type IIB compactification. A class of monomial potentials is obtained with specific values for the power index. Moreover,…
Axions, periodic scalar fields coupled to gauge fields through the instanton density, have a rich variety of higher-form global symmetries. These include a two-form global symmetry, which measures the charge of axion strings. As we review,…
On compactification from higher dimensions, a single free massive scalar field gives rise to a set of effective four-dimensional scalar fields, each with a different mass. These can cooperate to drive a period of inflation known as assisted…
Ignorance of the initial condition for the axion dynamics in the early Universe has led us to consider an $O(1)$ valued initial amplitude, and that prefers the decay constant, $F_a$, of the QCD axion to be an intermediate scale such as…
We provide a derivation from first principles of the primordial bispectrum of scalar perturbations produced during inflation driven by a canonically normalized scalar field whose potential exhibits small sinusoidal modulations. A potential…
We point out that cosmological constraint from the axion isocurvature perturbation is relaxed if the Higgs field obtains a large field value during inflation in the DFSZ axion model. This scenario is consistent with the Higgs inflation…
Models of inflation based on axions, which owe their popularity to the robustness against UV corrections, have also a very distinct class of signatures. The relevant interactions of the axion are a non-perturbative oscillating contribution…
Superstring theory, models with extra dimensions and other SUSY models generically predict that the coupling constants are in fact vacuum expectation values of fields like the dilaton, moduli etc. Assuming some of these fields are light…
Models of axion inflation are particularly interesting since they provide a natural justification for the flatness of the potential over a super-Planckian distance, namely the approximate shift-symmetry of the inflaton. In addition, most of…
We study pseudoscalar inflation in the Einstein-Cartan-Palatini (first-order) formulation of gravity while allowing for torsion. We introduce two non-minimal interactions in the gravitational sector: pseudoscalar couplings to the Pontryagin…
We survey observational constraints on the parameter space of inflation and axions and map out two allowed windows: the classic window and the inflationary anthropic window. The cosmology of the latter is particularly interesting;…
Pseudo-Goldstone bosons (pGBs) can provide technically natural inflatons, as has been comparatively well-explored in the simplest axion examples. Although inflationary success requires trans-Planckian decay constants, f > Mp, several…
Discrete symmetries allowed in string compactification are the mother of all global symmetries which are broken at some level. We discuss the resulting pseudo-Goldstone bosons, in particular the QCD axion and a temporary cosmological…
We revisit two-field hybrid inflation as an effective field theory for low-scale inflation with sub-Planckian scalar field ranges. We focus on a prototype model by Stewart because it allows for a red spectral tilt, which still fits the…
We discuss quantum gravitational effects in Einstein theory coupled to periodic axion scalars to analyze the viability of several proposals to achieve superplanckian axion periods (aka decay constants) and their possible application to…
We investigate multi-field inflationary scenarios with fields that drop out of the model in a staggered fashion. This feature is natural in certain multi-field inflationary setups within string theory; for instance, it can manifest itself…
The abundance of the QCD axion is known to be suppressed if the Hubble parameter during inflation, $H_{\rm inf}$, is lower than the QCD scale, and if the inflation lasts sufficiently long. We show that the tight upper bound on the inflation…