Related papers: Quantum stabilization of a hedgehog type of cosmic…
Recent developments in string theory have reinforced the notion that the space of stable supersymmetric and non-supersymmetric string vacua fills out a ``landscape'' whose features are largely unknown. It is then hoped that progress in…
In this thesis we investigate the microphysics of cosmic strings in non-minimal quantum field theories. In particular we consider theories in which fermion fields couple to the strings, and those with larger symmetry groups, such as grand…
In this talk I will discuss the role of finite temperature quantum corrections in string cosmology and show that they can lead to a stabilization mechanism for the volume moduli. I will show that from the higher dimensional perspective this…
We study the formation of cosmic strings by confining a stochastic magnetic field into flux tubes in a numerical simulation. We use overdamped evolution in a potential that is minimized when the flux through each face in the simulation…
The geometry of solutions to the higher dimensional Einstein vacuum equations presents aspects that are absent in four dimensions, one of the most remarkable being the existence of stably trapped null geodesics in the exterior of…
We review efforts in string model building, focusing on the heterotic orbifold compactifications. We survey how one can, starting from an explicit string theory, obtain models which resemble Nature. These models exhibit the standard model…
We describe the detailed study and results of high-resolution numerical simulations of string-induced structure formation in open universes and those with a non-zero cosmological constant. The effect from small loops generated from the…
We analyze a class of one-dimensional quantum systems characterized by a position-dependent kinetic term arising as the continuum limit of an inhomogeneous tight-binding model with spatially varying hopping amplitudes. In this limit, the…
In this paper, we establish a fully string-theoretic framework for calculating one-loop Higgs masses directly from first principles in perturbative closed string theories. Our framework makes no assumptions other than worldsheet modular…
In this note we construct self-dual cosmic strings from a gauge field theory with a generalized linear formation of potential energy density. By integrating the Einstein equation, we obtain a nonlinear elliptic equation which is equal with…
We study the instability of the Higgs vacuum caused by a cloud of strings. By catalysis, the decay rate of the vacuum is highly enhanced and, when the energy density of the cloud is larger than the critical value, a semi-classical vacuum…
We report on the energy-momentum correlators obtained with recent numerical simulations of the Abelian Higgs model, essential for the computation of cosmic microwave background and matter perturbations of cosmic strings. Due to significant…
We investigate the fermionic condensate and the vacuum expectation value of the energy-momentum tensor for a massive spinor field in the geometry of a straight cosmic string on background of de Sitter spacetime. By using the Abel-Plana…
We propose a string-inspired model which correlates several aspects of particle physics and cosmology. Inspired by the flat directions and the absence of adjoint Higgs representations found in typical string models, we consider a no-scale…
We find static solitons stabilized by quantum corrections in a (1+1)-dimensional model with a scalar field chirally coupled to fermions. This model does not support classical solitons. We compute the renormalized energy functional including…
We consider an Electroweak string in the background of a uniform distribution of cold fermionic matter. As a consequence of the fermion number non-conservation in the Weinberg-Salam model, the string produces a long-range magnetic field.
The dynamical stability of cosmic rings, or vortons, is investigated for the particular equation of state given by the Witten bosonic model. It is found that there exists a finite range of the state parameter for which the vorton states are…
We solve numerically the Boltzmann equation describing the evolution of a cosmic string network which contains only loops. In Minkowski space time the equilibrium solution predicted by statistical mechanics is recovered, and we prove that…
We study the stability of fluctuations around a homogeneous non-Abelian electric field background that is of a form that is protected from Schwinger pair production. Our analysis identifies the unstable modes and we find a limiting set of…
The static potential in the confinement ``phase'' of the SU(2) Higgs model is studied. In particular, the observation of the screening (called string breaking) of the static quarks by the dynamical light quarks leading to the formation of…