Related papers: Quintessence and Varying \alpha from Shape Moduli
We show that shape moduli in sub-millimeter extra dimensional scenarios, addressing the gauge hierarchy problem, can dominate the energy density of the universe today. In our scenario, the volume of the extra dimensions is stabilized at a…
Much recent attention has focused on theories with large extra compactified dimensions. However, while the phenomenological implications of the volume moduli associated with such compactifications are well understood, relatively little…
We consider compactification of extra dimensions and numerically calculate Casimir energy which is provided by the mass of Kaluza-Klein modes. For the extra space we consider a torus with shape moduli and show that the corresponding vacuum…
Recently, it was found by Greene and Levin that the Casimir energy of certain combinations of massless and massive fields in space with extra dimensions play a crucial role in the accelerated expansion of the late-time universe and…
By studying the effects of the shape moduli associated with toroidal compactifications, we demonstrate that Planck-sized extra dimensions can cast significant ``shadows'' over low-energy physics. These shadows can greatly distort our…
Light scalar fields very naturally appear in modern cosmological models, affecting such parameters of Standard Model as electromagnetic fine structure constant $\alpha$, dimensionless ratios of electron or quark mass to the QCD scale,…
We consider the cosmological role of the scalar fields generated by the compactification of 11-dimensional Einstein gravity on a 7D elliptic twisted torus, which has the attractive features of giving rise to a positive semi-definite…
We study the change of the effective fine structure constant in the cosmological models of a scalar field with a non-vanishing coupling to the electromagnetic field. Combining cosmological data and terrestrial observations we place…
We study a supersymmetric field theory in six dimensions compactified on the orbifold T^2/Z_2 with two Wilson lines. After supersymmetry breaking, the Casimir energy fixes the shape moduli at fixed points in field space where the symmetry…
We discuss Casimir effect of a massless, minimally coupled scalar field in a 6D warped flux compactification model and its implications for the hierarchy and cosmological constant problems, which are longstanding puzzles in phenomenology…
We consider a toroidal extra-dimensional space with shape moduli $\theta$ which is the angle between the two large extra dimensions $R_1$ and $R_2$ (twisted LED with $\delta=2$). The Kaluza-Klein (KK) compactification results in a tower of…
We study the spectrum, couplings and cosmological and astrophysical implications of the moduli fields for the class of Calabi-Yau IIB string compactifications for which moduli stabilisation leads to an exponentially large volume V ~ 10^{15}…
We consider `brane universe' scenarios with standard-model fields localized on a 3-brane in 6 spacetime dimensions. We show that if the spacetime is rotationally symmetric about the brane, local quantities in the bulk are insensitive to the…
Recent astrophysical observations of quasar absorption systems indicate that the fine structure constant $\alpha$ and the proton-electron mass ratio $\mu$ may have evolved through the history of the universe. Motivated by these…
In this paper, the generation of topological energy in models with large extra dimensions is investigated. The origin of this energy is attributed to a topological deformation of the standard Minkowski vacuum due to compactification of…
We examine the late-time (nucleosynthesis and later) cosmological implications of brane-world scenarios having large (millimeter sized) extra dimensions. In particular, recent proposals for understanding why the extra dimensions are so…
We study how the evolution of a Dark Energy Quintessence fluid is modified by the presence of a matter inhomogeneity. To do so, we study linear perturbations of a flat FLRW background containing dust and a slowly rolling scalar field. Under…
We consider a long range scalar force that mainly couples to dark matter and unstable Standard Model states, like the muon, with tiny strength. Probing this type of force would present a challenge to observations. We point out that the…
Bekenstein's model of a scalar field, \phi, that affects the electromagnetic permeability (usually identified with ``changing \alpha'') predicts tiny variations of the effective fine structure constant up to very high red-shifts,…
Changes in the values of the fundamental constants mu, the proton to electron mass ratio, and alpha, the fine structure constant due to rolling scalar fields have been discussed both in the context of cosmology and in new physics such as…