Related papers: Quantum Inflaton Dynamics
In order to go beyond the mean-field approximation, commonly used in the inflationary computations, an identification of the quantum constituents of the inflationary background is made. In particular, the homogeneous scalar field…
Although the paradigm of inflation has been extensively studied to demonstrate how macroscopic inhomogeneities in our universe originate from quantum fluctuations, most of the established literature ignores the crucial role that…
We study the problem of initial conditions for slow-roll inflation along a plateau-like scalar potential within the framework of fluctuation-dissipation dynamics. We consider, in particular, that inflation was preceded by a…
Methods and concepts for the study of phase transitions mediated by a time-dependent order-parameter field in curved spacetimes are discussed. A practical example is the derivation of an effective (quasi-)potential for the description of…
The energy and time scales during the inflationary stage of the universe calls for an out of equilibrium quantum field treatment. Moreover, the high energy densities involved make necessary the use of non-perturbative approaches as large N…
Quantum geometry predicts that a universe evolves through an inflationary phase at small volume before exiting gracefully into a standard Friedmann phase. This does not require the introduction of additional matter fields with ad hoc…
We study the non-linear dynamics of an inflationary phase transition in a quartically self coupled inflaton model within the framework of a de Sitter background. Large N and Hartree non-perturbative approximations combined with…
Observations of the cosmic microwave sky are revealing the primordial non-uniformities from which all structure in the Universe grew. The only known physical mechanism for generating the inhomogeneities we see involves the amplification of…
We develop a new approach to gravitational waves in which the Einstein equations are governed by the cosmological constant which is related to the existence of a manifold which is closed. We study an example in which the matter Lagrangian…
We consider chaotic inflation in the theories with the effective potentials phi^n and e^{\alpha\phi}. In such theories inflationary domains containing sufficiently large and homogeneous scalar field \phi permanently produce new inflationary…
Cosmic inflation provides a window to the highest energy densities accessible in nature, far beyond those achievable in any realistic terrestrial experiment. Theoretical insights into the inflationary era and its observational probes may…
We study the evolution of cosmological perturbations on large scales, up to second order, for a perfect fluid with generic equation of state. Taking advantage of super-horizon conservation laws, it is possible to follow the evolution of the…
Quantum gravity, as a fundamental theory of space-time, is expected to reveal how the universe may have started, perhaps during or before an inflationary epoch. It may then leave a potentially observable (but probably minuscule) trace in…
The linear cosmological perturbation theory of almost homogeneous and isotropic perfect fluid and scalar field universes is reconsidered and formally simplified. Using the existence of a covariant conserved quantity on large perturbation…
The physics of many closed, conservative systems can be described by both classical and quantum theories. The dynamics according to classical theory is symplectic and admits linear instabilities which would initially seem at odds with a…
In the framework of classical scale invariance, we consider quadratic gravity in the Palatini formalism and investigate the inflationary predictions of the theory. Our model corresponds to a two-field scalar-tensor theory, that involves the…
We re-examine large scalar fields within effective field theory, in particular focussing on the issues raised by their use in inflationary models (as suggested by BICEP2 to obtain primordial tensor modes). We argue that when the large-field…
We show that initial conditions for small-field inflation can be determined quantum mechanically by introducing a suitable flattened region in the scalar potential. The inflaton is then driven towards the slow-roll attractor solution…
The equations that govern the dynamics of the universe in the modified unimodular theory of gravity are derived. We find a mechanism for inflation in the early universe without postulating a false vacuum state during the first $10^{-35}$…
We provide a realisation of a singularity-free inflationary universe in the form of a simple cosmological model dominated at early times by a single minimally coupled scalar field with a physically based potential. The universe starts…