Equilibrium state of a self-interacting scalar field in the de Sitter background.

Abstract

Behaviour of a weekly self-interacting scalar field with a small mass in the de Sitter background is investigated using the stochastic approach (including the case of a double-well interaction potential). Existence of the de Sitter invariant equilibrium quantum state of the scalar field in the presence of interaction is shown for any sign of the mass term. The stochastic approach is further developed to produce a method of calculation of an arbitrary anomalously large correlation function of the scalar field in the de Sitter background, and expressions for the two-point correlation function in the equilibrium state, correlation time and spatial physical correlation radius are presented. The latter does not depend on time that implies that the characteristic size of domains with positive and negative values of the scalar field remains the same on average in the equilibrium state in spite of the expansion of the $t=const$ hypersurface of the de Sitter space-time.