Abstract
The viability of a given model for inflation is determined not only by the form of the inflaton potential, but also by the initial inflaton field configuration. In many models, field configurations which are otherwise well-motivated nevertheless fail to induce inflation, or fail to produce an inflationary epoch of duration sufficient to solve the horizon and flatness problems. In this paper, we propose a mechanism which enables inflation to occur even with such initial conditions. Our mechanism involves multiple scalar fields which experience a time-dependent mixing. This in turn leads to a "re-overdamping" phase as well as a parametric resonance which together "slingshot" the inflaton field from regions of parameter space that do not induce inflation to regions that do. Our mechanism is flexible, dynamical, and capable of yielding an inflationary epoch of sufficiently long duration. This slingshot mechanism can therefore be utilized in a variety of settings and thereby enlarge the space of potentially viable inflation models.
Highlights
Because of its many properties, both theoretical and observational, the inflationary paradigm has become a standard component of early-universe cosmology [1,2,3,4,5,6]
Certain regions within this phase space give rise to inflationary dynamics, and only certain subregions thereof lead to an inflationary epoch of sufficient duration
II, we considered a system of two scalar fields which undergo a cosmological phase transition and demonstrated a mechanism in which a parametric resonance followed by a re-overdamping phase together conspire to “slingshot” the vacuum expectation values (VEVs) of the lighter field to super-Planckian values
Summary
We shall introduce our scalar system and discuss its dynamics, with the goal of understanding how and why a slingshot emerges
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