Related papers: Duality Invariant Cosmology to all Orders in $\alp…
Canonical vacuum gravity is expressed in generally-covariant form in order that spacetime diffeomorphisms be represented within its equal-time phase space. In accordance with the principle of general covariance, the time mapping ${\T}:…
We make a perturbative analysis of the number of degrees of freedom in a large class of metric theories respecting spatial symmetries, of which the Lagrangian includes kinetic terms of both the spatial metric and the lapse function. We show…
We develop the principle of nongravitating vacuum energy, which is implemented by changing the measure of integration from $\sqrt{-g}d^{D}x$ to an integration in an internal space of $D$ scalar fields $\phi_{a}$. As a consequence of such a…
A string-inspired duality symmetry of the spatially flat Friedmann equations of general-relativistic cosmology is discussed and generalized, providing a map between exact solutions corresponding to different values of the barotropic index.
For a field theory that is invariant under diffeomorphisms there is a subtle interplay between symmetries, conservation laws and the phase space of the theory. The natural language for describing these ideas is that of differential forms…
The requirement that the laws of physics must be invariant under point-dependent transformations of the units of length, time, and mass is used as a selection principle while studying different generic effective theories of gravity. Thereof…
Non-relativistic conformally invariant systems in a rotating cosmic string (conical) spacetime are analyzed at the classical and quantum levels by means of the gravitoelectromagnetic interpretation of the background. Solutions of the…
A time-dependent bosonic string configuration is discussed, in graviton and dilaton backgrounds, leading to Weyl-symmetry beta-functions which are homogeneous in X^0, to any order in alpha'. As a consequence, a string reparametrization can…
The most general dilaton gravity theory in 2 spacetime dimensions is considered. A Hamiltonian analysis is performed and the reduced phase space, which is two dimensional, is explicitly constructed in a suitable parametrization of the…
Using a gauge-invariant formalism we derive and solve the perturbed cosmological equations for the BSBM theory of varying fine structure 'constant'. We calculate the time evolution of inhomogeneous perturbations of the fine structure…
One of the clear predictions of string theory is the presence of a dynamical scalar partner of the spin-2 graviton, known as the dilaton. This will violate the Einstein Equivalence Principle, leading to a plethora of possibly observable…
String theory requires two kinds of loop expansion: classical $(\alpha')$ worldsheet loops with expansion parameter $<T>$ where $T$ is a modulus field, and quantum $(\hbar)$ spacetime loops with expansion parameter $<S>$ where $S$ is the…
We study cosmological perturbation spectra using the dynamical equations of gauge invariant perturbations with a generalized blue/red-shift term. Combined with the power-law index of cosmological background, {\nu}, we construct a parameter…
We construct a class of theories which are scale invariant on quantum level in all orders of perturbation theory. In a subclass of these models scale invariance is spontaneously broken, leading to the existence of a massless dilaton. The…
We compute the cosmological reduction of general string theories, including bosonic, heterotic and type II string theory to order $\alpha'^{3}$, i.e., with up to eight derivatives. To this end we refine recently introduced methods that…
It is shown that a first-order cosmological perturbation theory for the open, flat and closed Friedmann-Lema\^itre-Robertson-Walker universes admits one, and only one, gauge-invariant variable which describes the perturbation to the energy…
We compute the cosmological reduction of the fourth powers of the Riemann tensor claimed to arise in string theory at order $\alpha'^{\,3}$, with overall coefficient proportional to $\zeta(3)$, and show that it is compatible with an…
We examine to what extent perturbative alpha'-corrections can generate a small cosmological constant in warped string compactifications. Focusing on the heterotic string at lowest order in the string loop expansion, we show that, for a…
If the fine structure constant $\alpha =e^2/(\hbar c)$ were to change, then a number of interpretations would be possible, attributing this change either to variations in the electron charge, the dielectric constant of the vacuum, the speed…
The effective theory of adiabatic fluctuations around arbitrary Friedmann-Robertson-Walker backgrounds - both expanding and contracting - allows for more than one way to obtain scale-invariant two-point correlations. However, as we show in…