相关论文: New Perspectives on Axion Misalignment Mechanism

Axion scenarios in which the spontaneous breaking of the Peccei-Quinn symmetry takes place before or during inflation, and in which axion dark matter arises from the misalignment mechanism, can be constrained by Cosmic Microwave Background…

We provide a systematic framework for theories of multiple axions. We discover a novel type of "alignment" that renders even very complex theories analytically tractable. Theories with about 100 axions and random parameters have an…

The QCD axion cosmology depends crucially on whether the QCD axion is present during inflation or not. We point out that contrary to the standard criterion, the Peccei-Quinn (PQ) symmetry could remain unbroken during inflation, even when…

Understanding the late-time acceleration of the Universe is one of the major challenges in cosmology today. In this paper, we present a new scalar field model corresponding to a generalised axion-like potential. In fact, this model can be…

A number of nuclear decay anomalies have been reported in the literature, which purport to show periodic variations in the decay rates of certain radioisotopes. If these reports reflect reality, they would necessitate a seismic shift in our…

The nature of axion cosmology is usually said to depend on whether the Peccei-Quinn (PQ) symmetry breaks before or after inflation. The PQ symmetry itself is believed to be an accident, so there is not necessarily a symmetry during…

Assuming axions are potential dark matter (DM) candidate that make up all of the DM abundance, we discuss production of axions via (i) standard misalignment mechanism during the period of reheating and (ii) graviton-mediated 2-to-2…

We consider extensions of the Standard Model in which a spontaneously broken global chiral Peccei-Quinn (PQ) symmetry arises as an accidental symmetry of an exact $Z_N$ symmetry. For $N = 9$ or $10$, this symmetry can protect the accion -…

We propose a new non-thermal mechanism of dark matter production based on vacuum misalignment. A global $X$-charge asymmetry is generated at high temperatures, under which both the will-be Higgs and the dark matter are charged. At lower…

We explore the interplay of the post-inflationary QCD axion and a light scalar field for the axion domain wall decay and dark matter (DM). The scalar field possesses a nonzero vacuum expectation value (VEV) during inflation, so that its…

Thermal misalignment provides an alternative to the standard misalignment mechanism for the cosmological production of scalar dark matter. In this framework, feeble couplings to particles in the thermal bath generate a finite-temperature…

Axions as dark matter is an increasingly important subject in astrophysics and cosmology. Experimental and observational searches are mounting across the mass spectrum of axion-like particles, many of which require detailed knowledge of…

We investigate the length of the period of validity of a classical description for the cosmic axion field. To this end, we first show that we can understand the oscillating axion solution as expectation value over an underlying coherent…

We review current cosmological constraints on the axion. We describe the basic mechanisms by which axions are created in the early universe, focussing on the standard thermal scenario where the dominant process is through axion radiation by…

We investigate the cosmology of an axion that is fundamentally non-compact. During inflation, fluctuations of the effectively massless field populate many QCD vacua, thereby evading conventional isocurvature constraints while generating…

We explore a scenario that allows for a strong first order phase-transition of QCD at non-negligible baryon number in the early universe and its possible cosmological observable consequences. The main assumption is a quasi-stable QCD-vacuum…

We present a brief overview of axion models associated to anomalous abelian (gauge) symmetries, discussing their main phenomenological features. Among these, the mechanism of vacuum misalignment introduced at the QCD and at the electroweak…

Because the inflationary mechanism is extremely sensitive to UV-physics, the construction of theoretically robust models of inflation provides a unique window on Planck-scale physics. We review efforts to use an axion with a shift symmetry…

The baryon asymmetry of the universe may be explained by rotations of the QCD axion in field space and baryon number violating processes. We consider the minimal extension of the Standard Model by a non-Abelian gauge interaction, $SU(2)_R$,…

We introduce a novel mechanism where the kinetic energy of a rotating axion can be dissipated by the interactions with dark magnetic monopoles. This mechanism leads to a framework where the QCD axion and dark monopoles account for the dark…