Related papers: More is Different: Multi-Axion Dynamics Changes To…
We review a class of models which generalize the traditional Peccei-Quinn (PQ) axion solution by a St\"uckelberg pseudoscalar. Such axion models represent a significant variant with respect to earlier scenarios where axion fields were…
The gravitational field of monopoles, cosmic strings and domain walls is studied in the quadratic gravitational theory $R+\alpha R^2$ with $\alpha |R|\ll 1$, and is compared with the result in Einstein's theory. The metric aquires…
Perturbative estimates suggest that extended topological defects such as cosmic strings emit few particles, but numerical simulations of the fields from which they are constructed suggest the opposite. In this paper we study the decay of…
Point-like topological defects are singular configurations that occur in a variety of in and out of equilibrium systems with two-dimensional orientational order. As they are associated with a nonzero circuitation condition, the presence of…
It was shown that the required high quality of the Peccei-Quinn (PQ) symmetry can be a natural outcome of the multiple QCD axions model. In the axiverse, a hypothetical mass mixing between the QCD axions and axion-like particles (ALPs) can…
We review the current status of axion cosmology in the light of recent work. We conclude that in the standard scenario, in which a global string network forms at the Peccei-Quinn phase transition, the largest contribution to the axion…
We present several models where the QCD axion arises accidentally. Confining gauge theories can generate axion candidates whose properties are uniquely determined by the quantum numbers of the new fermions under the Standard Model. The…
Exponential quintessence models motivated by string compactifications naturally involve both a dilatonic scalar and its axionic partner evolving on a curved field space, while spatial curvature enlarges the cosmological phase space and may…
We consider the evolution of a network of strings in an expanding universe, allowing for the formation of junctions between strings of different tensions. By explicitly including, in the velocity-dependent evolution equations for the…
In an axiverse with numerous axions, the cosmological moduli problem poses a significant challenge because the abundance of axions can easily exceed that of dark matter. The well-established stochastic axion scenario offers a simple…
Topological defects, in particular cosmic strings, give rise to an interesting mechanism for generating the primordial perturbations in the early Universe which are required to explain the present structure. An overview of the cosmic string…
We describe a numerical simulation of the evolution of an $S_3$ cosmic string network which takes fully into account the non-commutative nature of the cosmic string fluxes and the topological obstructions which hinder strings from moving…
We study the behaviour and consequences of cosmic string networks in contracting universes. They approximately behave during the collapse phase as a radiation fluids. Scaling solutions describing this are derived and tested against…
We explore novel topological responses and axion-like phenomena in three-dimensional insulating systems with spacetime-dependent mass terms encoding domain walls. Via a dimensional-reduction approach, we derive a new axion-electromagnetic…
The theories in which our world presents a domain wall (brane) embedded in large extra dimensions predict new types of topological defects. These defects arise due to the fact that the brane on which we live spontaneously breaks isometries…
(3+1)D topological phases of matter can host a broad class of non-trivial topological defects of codimension-1, 2, and 3, of which the well-known point charges and flux loops are special cases. The complete algebraic structure of these…
The axion, originally postulated by Peccei and Quinn to solve the strong CP problem, has become of great interest in particle and astroparticle phenomenology. Yet it has a problem. It is widely assumed that the axion leaves the…
Topological defects are ubiquitous in condensed-matter physics but only hypothetical in the early universe. In spite of this, even an indirect evidence for one of these cosmic objects would revolutionize our vision of the cosmos. We give…
When the topology of the universe is non trivial, it has been shown that there are constraints on the network of domain walls, cosmic strings and monopoles. I generalize these results to textures and study the cosmological implications of…
Standard two-dimensional orientation-field based phase-field models rely on a continuous scalar field to represent crystallographic orientation. The corresponding order parameter space is the unit circle, which is not simply-connected. This…