Related papers: Axion string signatures II: A cosmological plasma …
The topic of cosmic strings provides a bridge between the physics of the very small and the very large. They are predicted by some unified theories of particle interactions. If they exist, they may help to explain some of the largest-scale…
Axions are produced during a period of dilaton-driven inflation by amplification of quantum fluctuations. We show that for some range of string cosmology parameters and some range of axion masses, primordial axions may constitute a large…
Over the last decade, both experimental and theoretical advances have brought the need for strong coupling techniques in the analysis of deconfined QCD matter and heavy ion collisions to the forefront. As a consequence, a fruitful interplay…
We initiate a study on various cosmological imprints of string axions whose scalar potentials have plateau regions. In such cases, we show that a delayed onset of oscillation generically leads to a parametric resonance instability. In…
Axions are hypothetical pseudoscalar particles that have been regarded as promising dark matter (DM) candidates. On the other hand, extended compact objects such as axion stars, which are supported by gravity and axion self interactions,…
We propose heavy axions as a natural superheavy dark matter candidate in string theory, with the relic density of dark matter originating in quantum fluctuations during cosmic inflation. String Theory is well known for the possibility of…
We study closed string axions in type IIB orientifold compactifications. We show that for natural values of the background fluxes the moduli stabilisation mechanism of the LARGE Volume Scenario (LVS) gives rise to an axiverse characterised…
We study the cosmology of axions in the post-inflationary scenario, where random initial conditions and the ensuing string-domain-wall network generate an isocurvature power spectrum. Axions radiated from strings behave as warm, wave-like…
We review how axion-like particles (ALPs) naturally emerge in the low-energy effective field theory of string compactifications. We focus on the study of their mass spectrum and couplings, stressing that they depend on the mechanism used to…
A portion of light scalar dark matter, especially axions, may organize into gravitationally bound clumps (stars) and be present in large number in the galaxy today. It is therefore of utmost interest to determine if there are novel…
A new mechanism of cosmic axion production is proposed: axion bremsstrahlung from collisions of straight global strings. This effect is of the second order in the axion coupling constant, but the resulting cosmological estimate is likely to…
Ultra-light axions ($m_a\lesssim 10^{-18}$eV), motivated by string theory, can be a powerful probe of the energy scale of inflation. In contrast to heavier axions the isocurvature modes in the ultra-light axions can coexist with observable…
It is shown that the fusion of strings is a source of particle production in nucleus--nucleus collisions outside the kinematical limits of nucleon--nucleon collisions. This fact, together with another effect of string fusion, the reduction…
We show results for the expected reach of the network of experiments that is being set up globally with the aim of detecting the "invisible" axion, in light of a non-standard thermal history of the universe. Assuming that the axion is the…
Cosmological structure formation simulations of ultralight axion-like dark matter have shown that an axion star forms at the center of every dark matter halo in the Universe. These axion stars would then form in large numbers during the…
The early universe grants access to energy scales far beyond those achievable in terrestrial experiments and allows unstable Standard Model particles to play an active dynamical role. In this contribution, we focus on recent studies aimed…
Gravitational wave signatures from cosmic strings are analyzed numerically. Cosmic string networks form during phase transistions in the early universe and these networks of long cosmic strings break into loops that radiate energy in the…
We show that string moduli have axion-philic nature owing to the model-insensitive derivative interactions arising from the Kaehler potential. The decay of a modulus into stringy axions occurs without suppression by the mass of final…
We study the contribution to the QCD axion dark matter abundance that is produced by string defects during the so-called scaling regime. Clear evidence of scaling violations is found, the most conservative extrapolation of which strongly…
Ultralight axions which couple sufficiently strongly to photons can leave imprints on the sky at diverse frequencies by mixing with cosmic light in the presence of background magnetic fields. We explore such direction dependent grey-body…