Related papers: On the Schwinger effect during axion inflation
In this paper, we examine the viability of inflation models with a spectator axion field coupled to both gravitational and SU(2) gauge fields via Chern-Simons couplings. Requiring phenomenological success of the axion-SU(2) sector…
We analyze the dynamics of inflationary models with a coupling of the inflaton $\phi$ to gauge fields of the form $\phi F \tilde{F}/f$, as in the case of axions. It is known that this leads to an instability, with exponential amplification…
Electric flux may be screened by pair nucleation of heavy charges, a process that has a simple description in terms of a worldline instanton. When flux is wrapped around a small compact spatial dimension, worldline instantons still induce…
We study derivatively coupled fermions in axion-driven inflation, specifically $m_\phi^2\phi^2$ and monodromy inflation, and calculate particle production during the inflationary epoch and the post-inflationary axion oscillations. During…
Electron-positron pair production by the superposition of two laser pulses with different frequencies and amplitudes is analyzed as a particular realization of the assisted dynamic Schwinger effect. It is demonstrated that, within a…
$R^2$-Higgs inflation stands out as one of the best-fit models of Planck data. Using a covariant formalism for the inflationary dynamics and the production of helical gauge fields, we show that the observed baryon asymmetry of the Universe…
We study massive charged particle production from the vacuum confined between two vibrating plates in the presence of a strong electric field. We analytically derive a formula for the production number based on the perturbation theory in…
We study electron-positron pair production by the combination of a strong, constant electric field and a thermal background. We show that this process is similar to dynamically assisted Schwinger pair production, where the strong field is…
We formulate a stochastic generalisation of the Schwinger effect, extending pair production to statistically fluctuating gauge-field backgrounds. Our approach captures realistic field configurations that are transient, inhomogeneous, and…
It is shown that the evolution of the (Abelian) gauge coupling during an inflationary phase of de Sitter type drives the growth of the two-point function of the magnetic inhomogeneities. After examining the constraints on the variation of…
Inflationary models equipped with Chern-Simons coupling between their axion and gauge sectors exhibit an array of interesting signals including a testable chiral gravitational wave spectrum. The energy injection in the gauge sector…
Effect of spatially oscillating fields on the electron-positron pair production is studied numerically and analytically when the work done by the electric field over its spatial extent is smaller than twice the electron mass. Under large…
We investigate the phenomenon of electron-positron pair production from vacuum in the presence of a strong electric field superimposed by a weak but fast varying pulse which substantially increases the total particle yield. We employ a…
We study the scalar-tensor-tensor non-Gaussian signal in an inflationary model comprising also an axion coupled with SU(2) gauge fields. In this set-up, metric fluctuations are sourced by the gauge fields already at the linear level…
We study magnetogenesis in axionlike inflation driven by a pseudoscalar field $\phi$ coupled axially to the electromagnetic (EM) field $(\beta/M_{p})\phi F_{\mu\nu}\tilde{F}^{\mu\nu}$ with dimensionless coupling constant $\beta$. A set of…
Axion inflation is a well-motivated model of cosmic inflation with a rich phenomenology. The abundant production of gauge fields during axion inflation notably sources a stochastic gravitational-wave (GW) background signal, which nourishes…
When the inflaton couples to photons and amplifies electric fields, charged particles produced via the Schwinger effect can dominate the universe after inflation, which is dubbed as the Schwinger preheating. Using the hydrodynamic approach…
An axion-like spectator during inflation can trigger a tachyonic instability which amplifies the modes of one of the helicities of the gauge field, resulting in the production of parity-violating gravitational waves (GWs). In this paper we…
Building on Weinberg's approach to effective field theory for inflation, we construct an effective Lagrangian for a pseudo scalar (axion) inflaton field with shift symmetry. In this Lagrangian we allow the axion field to couple to…
Processes of particle production during inflation can increase the amplitude of the scalar metric perturbations. We show that such a mechanism can naturally arise in supergravity models where an axion-like field, whose potential is…