Related papers: Universal Correction to the Inflationary Vacuum
An alternative inflationary model is proposed predicated upon a consideration of the form of the uncertainty principle in a curved background spacetime. An argument is presented suggesting a possible curvature dependence in the correct…
If the Standard Model (SM) of elementary particle physics is assumed to hold good to arbitrarily high energies, then, for the best fit values of the parameters, the scalar potential of the Standard Model Higgs field turns negative at a high…
We consider the Einstein equations within the DBI scenario for a spatially flat Friedmann-Robertson-Walker (FRW) spacetime without a cosmological constant. We derive the inflationary scenario by applying the symmetry transformations which…
Non-trivial inflaton self-interactions can yield calculable signatures of primordial non-Gaussianity that are measurable in cosmic surveys. Surprisingly, we find that the phase transition to slow-roll eternal inflation is often incalculable…
A general equation, describing the lowest order corrections coming from quantum gravitational effects to the spectrum of cosmological scalar fluctuations is obtained. These corrections are explicitly estimated for the case of a de Sitter…
Eternal inflation is shown to require violations of the Null Energy Condition (NEC) on superhorizon scales. With light scalar fields as the matter sources in a de Sitter background, there can be no classical or semiclassical violations of…
We consider the evolution of quantum fields during inflation, and show that the total-energy singularities appearing in the perturbative expansion of the late-time Wavefunction of the Universe are purely real when the external states are…
In his 2005 review, Gravity and the Thermodynamics of Horizons, Paddy suggested that a vacuum in thermal equilibrium with a bath of radiation should have a gradually diminishing energy. We work through the consequences of this scenario, and…
We investigate chaotic inflation models with two scalar fields, such that one field (the inflaton) rolls while the other is trapped in a false vacuum state. The false vacuum becomes unstable when the inflaton field falls below some critical…
The Ward identities for conformal symmetries in single field models of inflation are studied in more detail in momentum space. For a class of generalized single field models, where the inflaton action contains arbitrary powers of the scalar…
We show that quantum corrections to the effective potential in supersymmetric hybrid inflation can be calculated all the way from the inflationary period - when the Universe is dominated by a false vacuum energy density - till the fields…
We propose an inflationary scenario inspired by a recent formulation, in terms of coherent states, of non-commutative quantum field theory. We consider the semiclassical Einstein equations, and we exploit the ultraviolet finiteness of the…
We consider scalar field theory in de Sitter space with a general vacuum invariant under the continuously connected symmetries of the de Sitter group. We begin by reviewing approaches to define this as a perturbative quantum field theory.…
We derive a general expression for the power spectra of scalar and tensor fluctuations generated during inflation given an arbitrary choice of boundary condition for the mode function at a short distance. We assume that the boundary…
A remarkable prediction of the Standard Model is that, in the absence of corrections lifting the energy density, the Higgs potential becomes negative at large field values. If the Higgs field samples this part of the potential during…
We propose that the spectrum of the surface area of the apparent horizon (AH) of de Sitter (dS) spacetime leads to corrected temperature and entropy of the dS spacetime, offering new insights into its thermodynamic properties. This is done…
We make the observation that a brane universe accelerates through its bulk spacetime, and so may be interpreted as an Unruh observer. The bulk vacuum is perceived to be a thermal bath that heats matter fields on the brane. It is shown that,…
Extensions of the Standard Model and general relativity featuring a UV fixed point can leave observable implications at accessible energies. Although mass parameters such as the Planck scale can appear through dimensional transmutation, all…
The theory of cosmological fluctuations assumes that the pre-inflationary state of the universe was the quantum vacuum of a scalar field(s) coupled to gravity. The observed cosmic microwave background fluctuations are then interpreted as…
The inflationary scenarios suggested by the duality properties of string cosmology in the Brans-Dicke (or String) frame are shown to correspond to accelerated contraction (deflation) when Weyl-transformed to the Einstein frame. We point out…