Related papers: The Cyclic Universe: An Informal Introduction
Non-minimally coupled scalar field models are well-known for providing interesting cosmological features. These include a late time dark energy behavior, a phantom dark energy evolution without singularity, an early time inflationary…
Matrix theory is a proposed non-perturbative definition of superstring theory in which space is emergent. We begin a study of cosmology in the context of matrix theory. Specifically, we show that matrix theory can lead to an emergent…
The changes of main paradigms on the structure and evolution of the Universe are reviewed. Two puzzles of the modern cosmology, the mean density of matter and the regularity of the Universe on large scales, as well as the possibility to…
A bouncing cosmology with an initial matter-dominated phase of contraction during which scales which are currently probed with cosmological observations exit the Hubble radius provides a mechanism alternative to inflation for producing a…
In this article we review recent developments of cyclic cosmology. A typical non-singular cyclic model within General Relativity requires a non-conventional fluid with negative effective energy density, in order to cancel the matter…
Georges Lemaitre introduced the term "phoenix universe" to describe an oscillatory cosmology with alternating periods of gravitational collapse and expansion. This model is ruled out observationally because it requires a supercritical mass…
The Universe is modeled as a binary mixture whose constituents are described by a van der Waals fluid and by a dark energy density. The dark energy density is considered either as the quintessence or as the Chaplygin gas. The irreversible…
Loop quantum cosmology predicts that, in simple models, the big bang singularity of classical general relativity is replaced by a quantum bounce. Because of the extreme physical conditions near the bounce, a natural question is whether the…
We present a novel theory of the very early universe which addresses the traditional horizon and flatness problems of big bang cosmology and predicts a scale invariant spectrum of perturbations. Unlike inflation, this scenario requires no…
The concept of oscillatory Universe appears to be realistic and buried in the dynamic dark energy equation of state. We explore its evolutionary history under the frame work of general relativity. We observe that oscillations do not go…
We consider a flat Universe filled with a vacuum energy coupled to matter and radiation by respectively positive coupling functions $Q_m$ and $Q_r$. We require that these functions be such as Universe exits from inflation to go to a…
We examine the behaviour of a closed oscillating universe filled with a homogeneous scalar field and find that, contrary to naive expectations, such a universe expands to larger volumes during successive expansion epochs. This intriguing…
In this paper we investigate the epochs in which the Universe started accelerating and when it began to become dark energy-dominated (i.e., the dynamics of the expansion of the Universe dominated by the dark energy). We provide analytic…
We propose a novel cosmological scenario with the space-time emerging from a pure initial de Sitter stage and subsequently evolving into the radiation, matter and dark energy dominated epochs, thereby avoiding the initial singularity and…
The properties of universes are explored that are entirely in the interior of black holes in another universe, a `mother universe'. It is argued that these models offer a paradigm that may shed a new light on old cosmological problems. The…
In a previous paper we proposed a new approach to the beginning of inflation -- a lingering universe. The universe begins in a lingering state with a nearly vanishing Hubble parameter. This calls into question the absolute age of the…
We present a cosmological model of an early-time scenario that incorporates a relaxation process of the would-be large vacuum energy, followed by a reheating era connecting to the standard hot big bang universe. Avoiding fine-tuning the…
The Hamiltonian of an evolving Universe is shown to be formally equivalent to that of a driven quantum system, whose driving follows from the temporal dependence of the spacetime metric. This analogy allows insights from the field of driven…
The existence of exact solutions which represent a lattice of black holes at a scalar-field-dominated cosmological bounce suggests that black holes could persist through successive eras of a cyclic cosmology. Here we explore some remarkable…
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…