Related papers: Astrophysical Bounds on Global Strings
We investigate the cosmological consequences of particle physics theories that admit stable loops of superconducting cosmic string - {\it vortons}. General symmetry breaking schemes are considered, in which strings are formed at one energy…
We present a new method for finding lower bounds on the energy of topological cosmic string solutions in gravitational field theories. This new method produces bounds that are valid over the entire space of solutions, unlike the traditional…
The observational evidence for the existence of a non-zero cosmological constant is getting stronger. It is therefore timely to address the question of its eventual effect on the dynamics of galaxies, clusters and larger structures in the…
Gravitational waves are propagating undulations in the spacetime fabric, which interact very weakly with their environment. In cosmology, gravitational-wave distortions are produced by most of the inflationary scenarios and their…
In an analysis of the gravitational lensing by two relativistic cosmic strings, we argue that the formation of closed time-like curves proposed by Gott is unstable in the presence of particles (e.g. the cosmic microwave background…
Recent measurements of the cosmic microwave background (CMB) anisotropies by BOOMERANG and MAXIMA collaborations have tightened the observational constraints on theories of structure formation. They disagree with the predictions of…
There is an extremely simple relationship between the spectrum of the gravitational wave background produced by a cosmological distribution of discrete gravitational wave sources, the total time-integrated energy spectrum of an individual…
String cosmology models predict a stochastic cosmic background of gravitational waves with a characteristic spectrum. I describe the background, present astrophysical and cosmological bounds on it, and outline how it may be possible to…
Photons can gravitationally scatter off a cosmic string loop and gain or lose energy. We consider the spectral distortion induced by cosmic string loops placed in an ambient thermal bath of photons. The fractional deviation from a thermal…
Using tidal disruption of globular clusters by the galactic center, we put limits on the total mass ever enclosed into orbits of observed globular clusters. Under the assumption that the rate of mass loss from the Galaxy is steady, we then…
Cosmic strings, as remnants of the symmetry breaking phase in the Early Universe, may be susceptible to non-local physics. Here we show that the presence of a Poincar\'e-invariant non-locality -- parametrized by a factor $\exp(-\Box\ell^2)$…
We consider the effects on cosmology of higher-derivative modifications of (effective) gravity that make it asymptotically free without introducing ghosts. The weakening of gravity at short distances allows pressure to prevent the…
In string gas cosmology, the extra dimensions of the underlying theory are kept at a microscopic scale by a gas of strings. In the matter-dominated era, however, dust pressure can lead to oscillations of the extra dimensions and to…
The gravitational lensing by long, wiggly cosmic strings is shown to produce a large number of lensed images of a background source. In addition to pairs of images on either side of the string, a number of small images outline the string…
The problem of possible astrophysical consequences of the existence of exotic differential structures on manifolds is discussed. It is argued that corrections to the curvature of the form of a source like terms should be expected in the…
We consider a hydrogen atom in the background spacetimes generated by an infinitely thin cosmic string and by a point-like global monopole. In both cases, we find the solutions of the corresponding Dirac equations and we determine the…
We critically assess the twin prospects of describing the observed universe in string theory, and using cosmological experiments to probe string theory. For the purposes of this short review, we focus on the limitations imposed by our…
We fully classify the phenomenology of gravitational wave emission from scaling cosmic string networks with varying tension and compute the spectral indices of the resulting stochastic backgrounds. In string compactifications, periods of…
Cosmic string networks generate cosmological perturbations actively throughout the history of the universe. Thus, the string sourced anisotropy of the cosmic microwave background is not affected by Silk damping as much as the anisotropy…
Using recent simulation results, we provide the mass and speed spectrum of cosmic string loops. This is the quantity of primary interest for many phenomenological signatures of cosmic strings, and it can be accurately predicted using…