Related papers: Thermodynamics via Creation from Nothing: Limiting…
We suggest a novel picture of the quantum Universe -- its creation is described by the {\em density matrix} defined by the Euclidean path integral. This yields an ensemble of universes -- a cosmological landscape -- in a mixed state which…
Quantum creation of the universe is described by the {\em density matrix} defined by the Euclidean path integral. This yields an ensemble of universes -- a cosmological landscape -- in a mixed quasi-thermal state which is shown to be…
The cosmological constant $\Lambda$ is a measure of the energy density of the vacuum. Therefore properties of the energy of the system in the metastable vacuum state reflect properties of $\Lambda = \Lambda(t)$. We analyze properties of the…
The general thermodynamic analysis of the quantum vacuum, which is based on our knowledge of the vacua in condensed-matter systems, is consistent with the Einstein earlier view on the cosmological constant. In the equilibrium Universes the…
The cosmological constant $\Lambda$ can be achieved as the result of entangled and statistically correlated minisuperspace cosmological states, built up by using a minimal choice of observable quantities, i.e. $\Omega_{m}$ and $\Omega_{k}$,…
In the saddle point approximation, the Euclidean path integral for quantum gravity closely resembles a thermodynamic partition function, with the cosmological constant $\Lambda$ playing the role of temperature and the ``density of…
Quantum Action Principle which has been used as a ground for a probabilistic interpretation of one-particle relativistic quantum mechanics \cite{GLL} is applied to quantum cosmology. The quantum creation of matter in a minisuperspace model…
In the more recent literature on cosmological evolutions of the universe the cosmic vacuum energy has become a non-renouncable ingredient. The cosmological constant $\Lambda$, first invented by Einstein, but later also rejected by him,…
The idea that the cosmological term, Lambda, should be a time dependent quantity in cosmology is a most natural one. It is difficult to conceive an expanding universe with a strictly constant vacuum energy density, namely one that has…
The world view suggested by quantum cosmology is that inflating universes with all possible values of the fundamental constants are spontaneously created out of nothing. I explore the consequences of the assumption that we are a `typical'…
After a short history of the $\Lambda$-term it is explained why the (effective) cosmological constant is expected to obtain contributions from short-distance-physics, corresponding to an energy scale of at least 100 GeV. The actual tiny…
We present a novel cosmological framework that unifies matter creation dynamics with thermodynamic principles. Starting with a single-component fluid characterized by a constant equation of state parameter, $\omega$, we introduce a…
We suggest an alternative framework for interpreting the current state of the visible universe. Our approach is based on a dynamical ``Cosmological Constant'' and the starting point is that a decaying vacuum produces matter. As we point…
The cosmological constant $\Lambda$ is usually interpreted as Dark Energy (DE) or modified gravity (MG). Here we propose instead that $\Lambda$ corresponds to a boundary term in the action of classical General Relativity. The action is zero…
The cosmological constant $\Lambda$ is a free parameter in Einstein's equations of gravity. We propose to fix its value with a boundary condition: test particles should be free when outside causal contact, e.g. at infinity. Under this…
We argue that in the context of string theory a large number N of connected degenerate vacua that mix will lead to a ground state with much lower energy, essentially because of the standard level repulsion of quantum theory for the…
We present an overview of a recently suggested new model of quantum initial conditions for the Universe in the form of a cosmological density matrix. This density matrix originally suggested in the Euclidean quantum gravity framework turns…
We study bound object formation in a background universe accelerated by cosmological constant and by quintessence. If the acceleration lasts forever, due to the existence of event horizon, one would have naively expected the universe to…
I describe an approach which connects classical gravity with the quantum microstructure of spacetime. The field equations arise from maximizing the density of states of matter plus geometry. The former is identified using the thermodynamics…
A mechanism for suppressing the cosmological constant is developed, based on an analogy with a superconducting phaseshift in which free fermions coupled perturbatively to a weak gravitational field are in an unstable false vacuum state. The…