Related papers: Two Tunnels to Inflation
Despite being at the heart of the theory of the "Big Bang" and cosmic inflation, the quantum field theory prediction of false vacuum tunneling has not been tested. To address the exponential complexity of the problem, a table-top quantum…
We consider the quantum creation of a closed universe within the Euclidean path-integral formalism. An analytical expression for the tunneling probability is derived, including both the exponential suppression and the exact Gaussian…
In quantum cosmology, one often considers tunneling phenomena which may have occurred in the early universe. Processes requiring quantum penetration of a potential barrier include black hole pair creation and the decay of vacuum domain…
We propose the mechanism of quantum creation of the open Universe in the observable range of values of $\Omega$. This mechanism is based on the no-boundary quantum state with the Hawking-Turok instanton applied to the model with a strong…
We propose two new classes of instantons which describe the tunneling and/or quantum creation of closed and open universes. The instantons leading to an open universe can be considered as generalizations of the Coleman-De-Luccia solution.…
Motivated by the work of Mersini, the particle production related to the tunneling in false vacuum decay is carefully investigated in the thin-wall approximation. It is shown that in this case the particle production is exponentially…
The tunneling probability for a system modelling macroscopic quantum tunneling is computed. We consider an open quantum system with one degree of freedom consisting of a particle trapped in a cubic potential interacting with an environment…
False vacuum decay in quantum mechanical first order phase transitions is a phenomenon with wide implications in cosmology, and presents interesting theoretical challenges. In the standard approach, it is assumed that false vacuum decay…
We investigate the quantum cosmological tunneling scenario for inflationary models. Within a path-integral approach, we derive the corresponding tunneling probability distribution. A sharp peak in this distribution can be interpreted as the…
We construct a two-stage inflationary model which can accommodate early inflation at a scale $\Lambda_1$ as well as a second stage of inflation at $\Lambda_2$ with a single scalar field $\phi$. We use a symmetric potential, valid in a…
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…
Using Bogomil'nyi inequality and the vanishing of topological charge at the unset of nucleation of a new universe permits a simpler,more direct insight into how topological defects (kinks and anti kinks) contribute to initial conditions at…
Entangled inflationary quantum states offer an interesting alternative to the standard Bunch-Davies vacuum. While they can be viewed from the point of view of a theory of effective initial states, it has been unclear exactly how such states…
If the universe is trapped and cooled in a metastable false vacuum state, that state will eventually decay by bubble nucleation and expansion. For example, many extensions of the standard model incorporate new scalar fields whose potential…
Bubbles of nothing (BoNs) describe the decay of spacetimes with compact dimensions and are thus of fundamental importance for many higher dimensional theories proposed beyond the Standard Model. BoNs admit a 4-dimensional description in…
In the present work, we quantize a closed Friedmann-Robertson-Walker model in the presence of a positive cosmological constant and radiation. It gives rise to a Wheeler-DeWitt equation for the scale factor which has the form of a…
We propose the mechanism of quantum creation of the open Universe in the observable range of values of $\Omega$. This mechanism is based on the no-boundary quantum state with the Hawking-Turok instanton in the model with nonminimally…
We investigate the cosmological observables using the Euclidean path integral approach. Specifically, we study both the no-boundary compact instantons scenario and the Euclidean wormholes scenario that can induce the creation of two…
We describe a new family of thin-wall instantons, with negative tension bubble walls, that mediate tunneling between Minkowski or de Sitter vacua. Some of these instantons can have exponentially enhanced tunneling rates, and would dominate…
We revisit the formalism for tunneling in quantum field theory developed by Coleman and collaborators. In particular using the generalization of WKB methods for tunneling in quantum mechanics we avoid the problems with negative eigenvalues…