Cyclic mixmaster universes

Abstract

We investigate the behaviour of bouncing Bianchi type IX `Mixmaster' universes in general relativity. This generalises all previous studies of the cyclic behaviour of closed spatially homogeneous universes with and without entropy increase. We determine the behaviour of models containing radiation by analytic and numerical integration and show that increase of radiation entropy leads to increasing cycle size and duration. We introduce a null energy condition violating ghost field to create a smooth, non-singular bounce of finite size at the end of each cycle and compute the evolution through many cycles with and without entropy increase injected at the start of each cycle. In the presence of increasing entropy we find that the cycles grow larger and longer and the dynamics approach flatness, as in the isotropic case. However, successive cycles become increasingly anisotropic at the expansion maxima which is dominated by the general-relativistic effects of anisotropic 3-curvature. However, it becomes positive after expansion drives the dynamics close enough to isotropy for the curvature to become positive and for gravitational collapse to ensue. In the presence of a positive cosmological constant, radiation and a ghost field we show that, for a very wide range of cosmological constant values, the growing oscillations always cease and the dynamics subsequently approach those of the isotropic de Sitter universe at late times. This model is not included in the scope of earlier cosmic no-hair theorems because the 3-curvature can be positive. In the case of negative cosmological constant, radiation and an ultra-stiff field (to create non-singular bounces) we show that a sequence of chaotic oscillations also occurs, with sensitive dependence on initial conditions. In all cases, we follow the oscillatory evolution of the scale factors, the shear, and the 3-curvature from cycle to cycle.