Related papers: Reionization from cosmic string loops
I report on recent numerical simulations of the simplest field theory with cosmic string solutions, the Abelian Higgs model. We find that random networks of string quickly converge to a scaling solution in which the network scale length…
Cosmic (super)strings offer promising ways to test ideas about the early universe and physics at high energies. While in field theory constructions their tension is usually assumed to be constant (or at most slowly-varying), this is often…
The intersection of string theory with cosmology is unavoidable in the early universe, and its exploration may shine light on both fields. In this thesis, three papers at this intersection are presented and reviewed, with the aim of…
Cosmic strings are linear concentrations of energy that may be formed at phase transitions in the very early universe. At one time they were thought to provide a possible origin for the density inhomogeneities from which galaxies eventually…
The first galaxies in the Universe are the building blocks of all observed galaxies. We present scaling relations for galaxies forming at redshifts $z \ge 15$ when reionization is just beginning. We utilize the ``Rarepeak' cosmological…
The production of a primordial stochastic gravitational-wave background by processes occuring in the early Universe is expected in a broad range of models. Observing this background would open a unique window onto the Universe's…
We show that metastable cosmic strings break at early times, either via finite-temperature effects or by attaching to pre-existing monopoles during network percolation. The resulting segments can be initially super-horizon in size and thus…
Theoretical studies and current observations of the high-redshift intergalactic medium (IGM) indicate that at least two cosmic transitions occur by the time the universe reaches gas metallicities of about $10^{-3}$ of solar values. These…
Cosmic strings induce minihalo formation in the early universe. The resultant minihalos cluster in string wakes and create a "21 cm forest" against the cosmic microwave background (CMB) spectrum. Such a 21 cm forest can contribute to…
The electroweak symmetry is unbroken in the core of cosmic strings originating from a symmetry breaking at an energy higher than the electroweak scale $\eta_{EW}$. The dynamics of such strings may generate a baryon asymmetry below the…
Recent observations on the cosmic microwave background by Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe(WMAP) strongly suggest that the reionization of the universe took place quite early (z \sim 17). On the other hand, it has been pointed out that…
Cosmic reionization holds the key to understand structure formation in the Universe, and can inform us about the properties of the first sources, as their star formation efficiency and escape fraction of ionizing photons. By combining the…
We explore the ability of measurements of the 21-cm power spectrum during reionization to enable the simultaneous reconstruction of the reionization history and the properties of the ionizing sources. For various sets of simulated 21-cm…
Cosmic string wakes lead to a large signal in 21 cm redshift maps at redshifts larger than that corresponding to reionization. Here, we compute the angular power spectrum of 21 cm radiation as predicted by a scaling distribution of cosmic…
We study the production of loops in the cosmic string network in the expanding background by means of a numerical simulation exact in the flat-spacetime limit and first-order in the expansion rate. We find an initial regime characterized by…
A network of cosmic strings would lead to gravitational waves which may be detected by pulsar timing or future interferometers. The details of the gravitational wave signal depend on the distribution of cosmic string loops, which are…
We show that the cosmic star formation rate per comoving volume should exhibit a distinct drop around the reionization redshift, when the HII regions in the intergalactic medium around individual ionizing sources first overlapped. The drop…
I use cosmological simulations that incorporate a physically motivated approximation to three-dimensional radiative transfer that recovers correct asymptotic ionization front propagation speeds for some cosmologically relevant density…
The Stochastic Gravitational Wave Background (SGWB) from cosmic superstrings offers one of the few known possibilities to test String Theory within current experimental reach. However, in order to be compatible with the existing…
An estimate for the number of ionizing photons per baryon as a function of redshift is computed based on the plausible extrapolation of the observed galaxy UV luminosity function and the latest results on the properties of the escape…