Inflationary Stage Research Articles

Curvature bounce in general relativity: background and primordial spectrum

Recent data suggest that the Universe could be positively curved. Combined with an inflationary stage, this might lead to a curvature bounce instead of the Big Bang. The background evolution is presented, as a function of the parameters controlling the cosmic evolution. The primordial tensor spectrum is also calculated and possible observational footprints of the model are underlined. Several potentials are considered and general remarks are made about “naturalness” in this context.

Thermodynamics in the Evolution of the Dark Universe

We present a model of the universe based on the theory that space consists of energy quanta. We use the thermodynamics of an ideal gas to elucidate the composition, accelerated expansion, and the nature of dark energy and dark matter without an Inflation stage. From wave-particle duality, the space quanta can be treated as an ideal gas. The universe started from an atomic size volume at very high temperature and pressure. Upon expansion and cooling, phase transitions occurred to form fundamental particles, and matter. These nucleate and grew into stars, galaxies, and clusters due to gravity. From cooling data, a thermodynamic phase diagram of cosmic composition was constructed which yielded a correlation between dark energy and the energy of space. Using Friedmann’s equations, our model fits well the Williamson Microwave Anisotropy Platform (WMAP) data on cosmic composition with an equation of state parameter, w = -0.7. The dominance of dark energy started at 7.25 × 109 years, in good agreement with Baryon Oscillation Spectroscopic Survey (BOSS) measurements. The expansion of space can be attributed to a scalar space field. Dark Matter is identified as a plasma form of matter similar to that which existed before recombination and during the reionization epoch. The expansion of the universe was adiabatic and decelerating during the first 7 billion years after the Big Bang; it accelerated thereafter. A negative pressure for Dark Energy is required to sustain it; this is consistent with the theory of General Relativity and energy conservation. We propose a mechanism for the acceleration as due to the consolidation of matter to form Black Holes and other massive compact objects. The resulting reduction in gravitational potential energy feeds back energy for the acceleration. It is not due to a repulsive form of gravity. Our Quantum Space model fits well the observed behavior of the universe and resolves the outstanding questions in Inflationary Big Bang Theory.

Holographic Description of the Early Universe

The holographic principle is applied to a description of the Universe in the early stage of its evolution. As an example, we examine a cosmological model with a bounce with subsequent transition to the early stage of inflation. We investigate cosmological models based on a viscous liquid with a generalized equation of state in terms of the holographic cutoff proposed by Nojiri and Odintsov. Within the framework of these models, we have calculated the infrared radius in terms of the particle horizon or the event horizon. Energy conservation laws are obtained from the holographic point of view. The viscous liquid describing the bounce and the early Universe is presented as a generalization of holographic energy.

Inflation model with viscous fluid

We investigated f(R) gravity with k-essence using the Starobinsky model as an example, given by the expression f(R) = R + α R 2. Using the hybrid function of the scale factor, we found the scalar field function and its potential. For the model under consideration, the parameters of the slow roll-off satisfy the inflationary stage. Our model allows us to obtain an accelerated expansion of the Universe during an inflationary period. A non-uniform non-viscous fluid was investigated, and then the viscosity was introduced in the second example. Received fluid equations for the accelerated universe.

Nonlocal self-healing of Higgs inflation

Higgs inflation is known to be a minimal extension of the Standard Model allowing for the description of the early Universe inflation. This model is considered an effective field theory since it has a relatively low cutoff scale, thus requiring further extensions to be a valid description of the reheating phase. We present a novel unified approach to the problem of unitarization and UV completion of the Higgs inflation model without introducing new massive degrees of freedom. This approach is based on an Analytic Infinite Derivative modification of the Higgs field kinetic term. We construct a unitary nonlocal UV completion of the original Higgs inflation model, while the inflationary stage is kept stable with respect to quantum corrections.

Numerical investigation of ram-air parachutes inflation with fluid-structure interaction method in wind environments

A novel nonlinear numerical model for folded ram-air parachutes inflation in wind environments is proposed based on graphical deformation and arbitrary Lagrange-Euler method. The Constrained Free-Form Deformation algorithm is introduced to implement the spanwise modeling of folded ram-air parachutes. The finite mass inflation simulation adopts Time-step Motion Method. The convection of flow field is set up by initial and boundary conditions to introduce the wind speed. This method is used to study the fluid-structure interaction dynamic characteristics of the folded ram-air parachutes inflation process in wind environments, and the transient 3D canopy shapes, surrounding flow field and opening load are obtained. The results show that the numerical result of opening load is consistent with the airdrop test. There exists a wake recontact phenomenon at the initial inflation stage. Besides, wind environments affect the inflation performance. Under upwind, the parachute inflates well and keeps a certain elevation angle. However, in the downwind or crosswind state, the payload-parachute system is unstable and unable to work. The maximum opening load in wind environments is larger than that without wind. And the stress concentration occurs at the leading edge and the stability fins. This manuscript can provide a reference for ram-air parachutes design and inflation performance optimization.

Gradient expansion formalism for magnetogenesis in the kinetic coupling model

In order to describe magnetogenesis during inflation in the kinetic coupling model, we utilize a gradient expansion which is based on the fact that only long-wavelength (superhorizon) modes undergo amplification. For this purpose, we introduce a set of functions (bilinear combinations of electromagnetic fields with an arbitrary number of spatial curls) satisfying an infinite chain of equations. Apart from the usual mode enhancement due to interaction with the inflaton, these equations also take into account the fact that the number of relevant modes constantly grows during inflation. Truncating this chain, we show that even with a relatively small number of equations, it is possible to describe the electric and magnetic energy densities with a few percent accuracy during the whole inflation stage. We arrive at this conclusion for different types of coupling functions (increasing, decreasing, and nonmonotonic) in the regime with strong backreaction and its absence.

Gauss\u2013Bonnet term corrections in scalar field cosmology

The influence of non-minimal coupling of a scalar field and the Gauss–Bonnet term on the inflationary stage of evolution of the universe is investigated in this paper. The main cosmological effects of such a coupling were considered. The deviations between Einstein–Gauss–Bonnet inflation and standard one based on Einstein gravity were determined. The corrections of a weak GB coupling preserving the type of the scalar field potential to standard inflationary models is considered as well.

Inflationary Model of the Universe with a Type IX Metric and Possibility of Its Quantum Birth

Within the framework of the general theory of relativity, an anisotropic cosmological model with expansion and rotation with a Bianchi type IX metric is constructed. The first stage of inflation of a Universe filled with a scalar field and an anisotropic liquid is considered. The Wheeler–De Witt equation is obtained, and the possibility of minisuperspace quantization is investigated.

Neutrino Cooling of Primordial Hot Regions

The effect of neutrino cooling of possible primary regions filled by hot matter is discussed. Such regions could be obtained from the primordial density inhomogeneities and survive up to the modern epoch. The inhomogeneities could be caused by a symmetry breaking during the inflationary stage. We show that the final temperature of such region should be ∼10 keV provided that the initial temperature is within the interval 10 keV ÷ 100 MeV. The cooling is realized due to the weak nuclear reactions containing n−p transition. The lower limit 10keV is accounted for by suppression of the reactions rates because of the threshold effect and particle concentration decrease.

Extended metastable dark energy

The metastable dark energy scenario is revisited by assuming that the current false vacuum energy density is the remnant from a primeval inflationary stage. The zero temperature scalar field potential is here described by an even power series up to order six which depends on 3 free parameters: the mass of the scalar field ($m$), the dimensionless ($\lambda$) specifying the standard self-interaction term, and a free cutoff mass scale ($M$) quantifying all possible deviations from the degenerate false vacuum state. The current $\Lambda$CDM model is a consequence of the very long decay time of the false vacuum which although finite is much greater than the current age of the Universe. This result remains valid for arbitrary combinations of the $m/M$ ratio which can analytically be determined in the thin-wall approximation and numerically calculated outside this limit. Unlike many claims in the literature the vacuum dominance may be temporary. The finiteness of the decay time suggests that the ultimate stage of the observed Universe in such a scenario will not be driven by a de Sitter type cosmology.

Generating PBHs and small-scale GWs in two-field models of inflation

Primordial black holes (PBHs) generated by gravitational collapse of large primordial overdensities can be a fraction of the observed dark matter. In this paper, we introduce a mechanism to produce a large peak in the primordial power spectrum (PPS) in two-field inflationary models characterized by two stages of inflation based on a large non-canonical kinetic coupling. This mechanism is generic to several two-field inflationary models, due to a temporary tachyonic instability of the isocurvature perturbations at the transition between the two stages of inflation. We numerically compute the primordial perturbations from largest scales to the small scales corresponding to that of PBHs using an extension of BINGO (BI-spectra and Non-Gaussianity Operator). Moreover we numerically compute the stochastic background of gravitational waves (SBGW) produced by second order scalar perturbations within frequencies ranging from nano-Hz to KHz that covers the observational scales corresponding to Pulsar Timing Arrays, Square Kilometer Array to that of Einstein telescope. We discuss the prospect of its detection by these proposed and upcoming gravitational waves experiments.

The Fundamental Roles of the de Sitter Vacuum

We overview the fundamental roles of the de Sitter vacuum in cosmology where it is responsible for powering the early inflationary stage(s) and the present accelerated expansion, in black hole physics where it provides the existence of a wide class of regular black holes and self-gravitating solitons replacing naked singularities, and in particle physics where it ensures the intrinsic relation of the Higgs mechanism with gravity and spacetime symmetry breaking.

Geophysical evidence of first stages of inflation in Domuyo volcanic center in northwestern Neuquén province, Argentina

Cerro Domuyo, in northwestern Neuquén province of Argentina, shows notable geothermal activity, although it is located at a considerable distance from the actual volcanic arc. Many studies have been developed in this area with the aim of investigating its geothermal field. Despite these efforts, the characterization of the dynamic activity in the area is still poorly known. This work shows the results of a network of seismological stations, which registered volcano-tectonic, long-period and hybrid events. A large number of volcano-tectonic events concentrated mostly in the Cerro Domuyo geothermal area were detected. These events can be divided into two groups, those that occurred at shallow depths below the geothermal area and those at greater depths below the high region of Cerro Domuyo. Shallow events were located around the Manchana Covunco fault and many of them were particularly clustered at its intersection with the Humazo fault. Seismicity in the area shows that these faults are continually active due to fluid movement, as was evidenced by the hydrothermal manifestation of the Humazo in 2003. Moreover, new studies provide evidence that the Cerro Domuyo is experiencing an important inflation caused by a magmatic body. Deep volcano-tectonic events are evidencing this activity. Considering the large distance between the actual volcanic arc and the study region, and the high density of shallow volcano-tectonic events, it is highly likely that this magmatic body is increasing the geothermal activity. Additionally, the aeromagnetic anomaly over Cerro Domuyo is showing a thin magnetic crust of less than 6 km, suggesting a clear link between the geophysical results and the inflation in Cerro Domuyo.

Felsic magma-water interaction in shallow intrusive environments: Timing between fluidal peperites and intrusive hyaloclastites in a jurassic cryptodome from the eastern Deseado Massif (patagonia, Argentina)

This work describes the facies architecture, morphology and textures of a Jurassic rhyodacitic cryptodome outcropping in the Don Nicolás Mine, an important Au–Ag producing mine located in the Deseado Massif, Argentinean Patagonia. The access to 70 m deep surface mining operation and to a large number of diamond drill cores offer a unique chance to explore the volcanic rock assemblage of this body, allowing to study intrusion and growth mechanisms of a shallow subvolcanic body, and also providing insights into the timing between different brecciation processes occurring during magma intrusion into a poorly consolidated and water saturated pyroclastic sequence. Facies analysis allowed to infer this body as the result of a rhyodacitic magma intruding in a single and steady endogenous inflation pulse, resulting in the development of a flow banded core and a fluidal peperite envelope due to the combination of relatively low magma viscosities (for a rhyodacitic melt), the development of stable vapor films insulating the flowing magma and also allowing the ductile deformation of the rhyodacite clasts, and the fluidization of the unconsolidated and water saturated host rocks. After the main inflation stage stopped, the collapse of the vapor films resulted in quench fragmentation modifying the originally fluidal shape of many clast at the peperites, specially at the outer portion of the breccia envelope where fluidal clast shapes were almost completely erased due to this process. At the same time water invaded the inner portions of the intrusion, causing widespread quenching and the development of intrusive hyaloclastites at the edges of the coherent facies.

Study on Inflatable Deployment Characteristics of Flexible Film Wing

The inflation deployment process directly affects the forming and bearing deformation characteristics of the flexible wing. In order to optimize the structural design of the flexible inflatable wing, the inflation deployment process was studied with the finite element simulation calculation for the distribution characteristics of pressure and displacement when the wing is not inflated and after inflation molding. The results show that the inflation process is: for the first stage, when the inflation pressure is lower than the critical forming pressure, due to the effect of gravity, the flexible film wing downward bending, and the skin surface pressure is quite small, while the wing is inflated, the overall deformation and displacement is quite large. for the second stage of inflation molding, the flexible wing has a bearing stiffness, but due to aerodynamic loading upward warping occurred, the pressure of the wing root is large, but the displacement of the wing tip is large, which could provide a valid reference method to study the precision and stability of the flexible wing inflation process.

Inflationary equilibrium configurations of scalar-tensor theories of gravity

In this paper we investigate the asymptotic dynamics of inflationary cosmological models that are based in scalar-tensor theories of gravity. Our main aim is to explore the global structure of the phase space in the framework of single-field inflation models. For this purpose we make emphasis in the adequate choice of the variables of the phase space. Our results indicate that, although single-field inflation is generic in the sense that the corresponding critical point in the phase space exists for a wide class of potentials, along given phase space orbits -- representing potential cosmic histories -- the occurrence of the inflationary stage is rather dependent on the initial conditions. We have been able to give quantitative estimates of the relative probability (RP) for initial conditions leading to slow-roll inflation. For the non-minimal coupling model with the $\phi^2$-potential our rough estimates yield to an almost vanishing relative probability: $10^{-13}\,\%\lesssim RP\ll 10^{-8}\,\%$. These bonds are greatly improved in the scalar-tensor models, including the Brans-Dicke theory, where the relative probability $1\,\%\lesssim RP\leq 100\,\%$. Hence slow-roll inflation is indeed a natural stage of the cosmic expansion in Brans-Dicke models of inflation. It is confirmed as well that the dynamics of vacuum Brans-Dicke theories with arbitrary potentials are non-chaotic.

Generation of primordial black holes and gravitational waves from dilaton-gauge field dynamics

We study the observational signatures from particle production of a U(1) gauge field kinetically coupled to an inflaton. Regarding the form of gauge kinetic function, we consider the possibility that it becomes stabilized at a certain time, which makes the growing power of the gauge field evolve non-monotonically with a sharp transition. Remarkably, the copious production of the gauge field occurs on super-horizon scales at the late stage of inflation and perturbations are enhanced on the intermediate scales during inflation. We find that it can predict a bumpy shape of the curvature power spectrum which leads to the generation of primordial black holes as a dark matter after inflation. We also estimate two types of tensor modes sourced by the gauge field: the primordial gravitational waves generated during inflation and the induced gravitational waves provided by the enhanced curvature perturbation after inflation. We show that both of them are potentially testable with the future space-based gravitational wave interferometers.

Separatrices in the Hamilton–Jacobi formalism of inflaton models

We consider separatrix solutions of the differential equations for inflaton models with a single scalar field in a zero-curvature Friedmann–Lemaître–Robertson–Walker universe. The existence and properties of separatrices are investigated in the framework of the Hamilton–Jacobi formalism, where the main quantity is the Hubble parameter considered as a function of the inflaton field. A wide class of inflaton models that have separatrix solutions (and include many of the most physically relevant potentials) is introduced, and the properties of the corresponding separatrices are investigated, in particular, asymptotic inflationary stages, leading approximations to the separatrices, and full asymptotic expansions thereof. We also prove an optimal growth criterion for potentials that do not have separatrices.

Trans-Planckian censorship of multistage inflation and dark energy

We explore the bound of the trans-Planckian censorship conjecture on an inflation model with multiple stages. We show that if the first inflationary stage is responsible for the primordial perturbations in the cosmic microwave background window, the $e$-folding number of each subsequent stage will be bounded by the energy scale of the first stage. This seems to imply that the lifetime of the current era of accelerated expansion (regarded as one of the multiple inflationary stages) might be a probe for distinguishing inflation from its alternatives. We also present a multistage inflation model in a landscape consisting of anti-de Sitter vacua separated by potential barriers.