Related papers: Particle Physics and the Cosmic Microwave Backgrou…
A model of Lorentz invariant random fluctuations in photon polarization is presented. The effects are frequency dependent and affect the polarization of photons as they propagate through space. We test for this effect by confronting the…
Since it is commonly believed that the observed large-scale structure of the Universe is an imprint of quantum fluctuations existing at the very early stage of its evolution, it is reasonable to pose the question: Do the effects of quantum…
The angular power spectrum of the Cosmic Microwave Background has been measured out to sufficiently small angular scale to encompass a few acoustic oscillations. We use a phenomenological fit to the angular power spectrum to quantify the…
We present the main scientific goals and characteristics of the ESA Planck satellite mission, as well as the main features of the survey strategy and simulated performance in terms of measuring the temperature and polarization of the Cosmic…
Shock waves are examples of the far-from-equilibrium behaviour of matter; they are ubiquitous in nature, yet the underlying microscopic mechanisms behind their formation are not well understood. Here, we study the dynamics of dispersive…
Modern cosmology has created a tight link between particle physics / field theory and a wealth of new observational data on the structure of the Universe. These lecture notes focus on some of the most important aspects concerning the…
In this article we review the theory of cosmological inflation with a particular focus on the beautiful connection it provides between the physics of the very small and observations of the very large. We explain how quantum mechanical…
Since the measurements of COBE/FIRAS in the mid-90's we know that the energy spectrum of the cosmic microwave background (CMB) is extremely close to that of a perfect blackbody at an average temperature T0~2.726K. However, a number of…
It is likely that the observed large-angular-scale anisotropies in the microwave background radiation are induced by the cosmological perturbations of quantum-mechanical origin. Such perturbations are now placed in squeezed vacuum quantum…
The genuine quantum gravity effects can already be around us. It is likely that the observed large-angular-scale anisotropies in the microwave background radiation are induced by cosmological perturbations of quantum-mechanical origin. Such…
In this talk, I review a number of particle-physics models that lead to the creation of magnetic fields in the early universe and address the complex problem of evolving such primordial magnetic fields into the fields observed today.…
Advances in micro-technology of the last years have made it possible to carry optics textbooks experiments over to atomic and molecular beams, such as diffraction by a double slit or transmission grating. The usual wave-optical approach…
Whether we live in a spatially finite universe, and what its shape and size may be, are among the fundamental long-standing questions in cosmology. These questions of topological nature have become particularly topical, given the wealth of…
We discuss the effects of cosmic phase transition on the spectrum of primordial gravitational waves generated during inflation. The energy density of the scalar condensation responsible for the phase transition may become sizable at the…
We study the uniqueness and robustness of acoustic signatures in the cosmic microwave background by allowing for the possibility that they are generated by some as yet unknown source of gravitational perturbations. The acoustic {\it…
Using a \emph{gedanken} experiment providing presumably a minimal inaccuracy the uncertainty contributions to the space-time measurement are precisely evaluated for clock and mirror respectively. The resulting expression of minimal…
The post-inflationary epochs are critical for comprehending the early evolution of our Universe. This article delves into the cosmological signatures that shed light on these early epochs, particularly focusing on the generation of various…
Arguments are gived for the plausibility that quantum mechanics is a stochastic theory and that many quantum phenomena derive from the existence of a real noise consisting of vacuum fluctuations of all fundamental fields existing in nature.…
COSMOPARTICLE PHYSICS is the specific crossdisciplinary field of science, studying foundations of particle physics and cosmology in the combination of indirect cosmological, astrophysical and physical signatures of their fundamental…
Most treatments of large scale anomalies in the microwave sky are a posteriori, with unquantified look-elsewhere effects. We contrast these with physical models of specific inhomogeneities in the early universe which then generate apparent…