Related papers: Cosmic Phase Transitions
The early stages of the universe evolution are discussed according to the hot big bang model and the grand unified theories. The shortcomings of big bang are summarized and their resolution by inflationary cosmology is sketched.…
We study thermalization of the early Universe when the inflaton can decay into the Standard Model (SM) quarks and gluons, using QCD arguments. We describe the possible formation of the thermal plasma of soft gluons and quarks well before…
Motivated by cosmological first-order phase transitions we examine the nucleation and evolution of vacuum bubbles in non-vacuum environments. Non-standard backgrounds can be relevant in the context of rapid tunneling processes on the…
We systematically explore and show the existence of finite-temperature continuous quantum phase transition (CTQPT) at a critical point, namely, during solidification or melting such that the first-order thermal phase transition is a special…
A popular science article designed to introduce people familiar with basic cosmological nomenclature with models alternative to cosmological inflation. The paper briefly discusses the modern view of the Big Bang model, inflation (both its…
The pre--big bang cosmological scenario is studied within the context of the Brans--Dicke theory of gravity. An epoch of superinflationary expansion may occur in the pre--big bang phase of the Universe's history in a certain region of…
Astronomers seem to be observing the fossilized remnants of quantum gravitational processes which took place during the epoch of {\it primordial inflation} that is conjectured to have occurred during the first $10^{-32}$ seconds of cosmic…
A first order phase transition usually proceeds by nucleating bubbles of the new phase which then rapidly expand. In confining gauge theories with a gravity dual, the deconfined phase is often described by a black hole. If one starts in…
The phase transition patterns displayed by a model of two coupled complex scalar fields are studied at finite temperature and chemical potential. Possible phenomena like symmetry persistence and inverse symmetry breaking at high…
We study the dynamics of cosmological phase transitions in the case of small velocities of bubble walls, $v_w<0.1$. We discuss the conditions in which this scenario arises in a physical model, and we compute the development of the phase…
Quantum phase transitions occur at zero temperature when some non-thermal control-parameter like pressure or chemical composition is changed. They are driven by quantum rather than thermal fluctuations. In this review we first give a…
We present a new approach to early universe cosmology. Inflation is replaced by a phase transition in which both matter and geometry are created simultaneously. We calculate the spectrum of metric perturbations and show that it is flat. We…
This chapter, to appear in the section on QCD under extreme conditions within the Encyclopedia of Nuclear Physics, aims to provide a pedagogical introduction to the physics of quarks and gluons in the presence of high temperature, nonzero…
A unified description of i) classical phase transitions and their remnants in finite systems and ii) quantum phase transitions is presented. The ensuing discussion relies on the interplay between, on the one hand, the thermodynamic concepts…
We present a general introduction to the non-zero temperature dynamic and transport properties of low-dimensional systems near a quantum phase transition. Basic results are reviewed in the context of experiments on the spin-ladder…
Quantum Phase Transition (QPT) is a phase transition between different quantum states by adjusting some control parameters. Based on the Principle of Hamilton Dynamics (PHD) and the Principle of Lagrangian Dynamics (PLD), a general QPT…
The dipole-coupled two-level atoms(qubits) in a single-mode resonant cavity is studied by extended bosonic coherent states. The numerically exact solution is presented. For finite systems, the first-order quantum phase transitions occur at…
We study the possibility to construct an observationally viable scenario where both early Inflation and the recently detected accelerated expansion of the universe can be explained by using a single scalar field associated with the Tachyon.…
The big bang model and the history of the early universe according to the grand unified theories are introduced. The shortcomings of big bang are discussed together with their resolution by inflationary cosmology. Inflation, the subsequent…
An epoch of accelerated expansion, or inflation, in the early universe solves several cosmological problems. While there are many models of inflation only recently has it become possible to discriminate between some of the models using…