382 research outputs found
Cosmic string loops and large-scale structure
We investigate the contribution made by small loops from a cosmic string
network as seeds for large-scale structure formation. We show that cosmic
string loops are highly correlated with the long-string network on large scales
and therefore contribute significantly to the power spectrum of density
perturbations if the average loop lifetime is comparable to or above one Hubble
time. This effect further improves the large-scale bias problem previously
identified in earlier studies of cosmic string models.Comment: 5 pages, 5 figure
Spatial patterns and biodiversity in off-lattice simulations of a cyclic three-species Lotka-Volterra model
Stochastic simulations of cyclic three-species spatial predator-prey models
are usually performed in square lattices with nearest neighbor interactions
starting from random initial conditions. In this Letter we describe the results
of off-lattice Lotka-Volterra stochastic simulations, showing that the
emergence of spiral patterns does occur for sufficiently high values of the
(conserved) total density of individuals. We also investigate the dynamics in
our simulations, finding an empirical relation characterizing the dependence of
the characteristic peak frequency and amplitude on the total density. Finally,
we study the impact of the total density on the extinction probability, showing
how a low population density may jeopardize biodiversity.Comment: 5 pages, 7 figures; new version, with new title and figure
Cosmic strings, loops, and linear growth of matter perturbations
We describe the detailed study and results of high-resolution numerical
simulations of string-induced structure formation in open universes and those
with a non-zero cosmological constant. The effect from small loops generated
from the string network has also been investigated. We provide a
semi-analytical model which can reproduce these simulation results. A detailed
study of cosmic string network properties regarding structure formation is also
given, including the correlation time, the topological analysis of the source
spectrum, the correlation between long strings and loops, and the evolution of
long-string and loop energy densities. For models with 8 h^{-1}\sigma_8$, and an overall shape which are consistent within
uncertainties with those currently inferred from galaxy surveys. The cosmic
string scenario with hot dark matter requires a strongly scale-dependent bias
in order to agree with observations.Comment: 60 pages, 24 figure
Topological defects: A problem for cyclic universes?
We study the behaviour of cosmic string networks in contracting universes,
and discuss some of their possible consequences. We note that there is a
fundamental time asymmetry between defect network evolution for an expanding
universe and a contracting universe. A string network with negligible loop
production and small-scale structure will asymptotically behave during the
collapse phase as a radiation fluid. In realistic networks these two effects
are important, making this solution only approximate. We derive new scaling
solutions describing this effect, and test them against high-resolution
numerical simulations. A string network in a contracting universe, together
with the gravitational radiation background it has generated, can significantly
affect the dynamics of the universe both locally and globally. The network can
be an important source of radiation, entropy and inhomogeneity. We discuss the
possible implications of these findings for bouncing and cyclic cosmological
models.Comment: 11 RevTeX 4 pages, 6 figures; version to appear in Phys. Rev.
Primordial Adiabatic Fluctuations from Cosmic Defects
We point out that in the context of ``two-metric'' theories of gravity there
is the possibility that cosmic defects will produce a spectrum of primordial
adiabatic density perturbations. This will happen when the speed characterising
the defect-producing scalar field is much larger than the speed characterising
gravity and all standard model particles. This model will exactly mimic the
standard predictions of inflationary models, with the exception of a small
non-Gaussian signal which could be detected by future experiments. We briefly
discuss defect evolution in these scenarios and analyze their cosmological
consequences.Comment: 5 LaTeX pages, no figures; version to appear in Phys. Rev. Let
Dark Matter and Dark Energy
I briefly review our current understanding of dark matter and dark energy.
The first part of this paper focusses on issues pertaining to dark matter
including observational evidence for its existence, current constraints and the
`abundance of substructure' and `cuspy core' issues which arise in CDM. I also
briefly describe MOND. The second part of this review focusses on dark energy.
In this part I discuss the significance of the cosmological constant problem
which leads to a predicted value of the cosmological constant which is almost
times larger than the observed value \la/8\pi G \simeq
10^{-47}GeV. Setting \la to this small value ensures that the
acceleration of the universe is a fairly recent phenomenon giving rise to the
`cosmic coincidence' conundrum according to which we live during a special
epoch when the density in matter and \la are almost equal. Anthropic
arguments are briefly discussed but more emphasis is placed upon dynamical dark
energy models in which the equation of state is time dependent. These include
Quintessence, Braneworld models, Chaplygin gas and Phantom energy. Model
independent methods to determine the cosmic equation of state and the
Statefinder diagnostic are also discussed. The Statefinder has the attractive
property \atridot/a H^3 = 1 for LCDM, which is helpful for differentiating
between LCDM and rival dark energy models. The review ends with a brief
discussion of the fate of the universe in dark energy models.Comment: 40 pages, 11 figures, Lectures presented at the Second Aegean Summer
School on the Early Universe, Syros, Greece, September 2003, New References
added Final version to appear in the Proceeding
Cosmic structure formation in Hybrid Inflation models
A wide class of inflationary models, known as Hybrid Inflation models, may
produce topological defects during a phase transition at the end of the
inflationary epoch. We point out that, if the energy scale of these defects is
close to that of Grand Unification, then their effect on cosmic structure
formation and the generation of microwave background anisotropies cannot be
ignored. Therefore, it is possible for structure to be seeded by a combination
of the adiabatic perturbations produced during inflation and active
isocurvature perturbations produced by defects. Since the two mechanisms are
uncorrelated the power spectra can be computed by a weighted average of the
individual contributions. We investigate the possible observational
consequences of this with reference to general Hybrid Inflation models and also
a specific model based on Supergravity. These mixed perturbation scenarios have
some novel observational consequences and these are discussed qualitatively.Comment: 22 Page
Junctions and spiral patterns in Rock-Paper-Scissors type models
We investigate the population dynamics in generalized Rock-Paper-Scissors
models with an arbitrary number of species . We show, for the first time,
that spiral patterns with -arms may develop both for odd and even , in
particular in models where a bidirectional predation interaction of equal
strength between all species is modified to include one N-cyclic predator-prey
rule. While the former case gives rise to an interface network with Y-type
junctions obeying the scaling law , where is the
characteristic length of the network and is the time, the later can lead to
a population network with -armed spiral patterns, having a roughly constant
characteristic length scale. We explicitly demonstrate the connection between
interface junctions and spiral patterns in these models and compute the
corresponding scaling laws. This work significantly extends the results of
previous studies of population dynamics and could have profound implications
for the understanding of biological complexity in systems with a large number
of species.Comment: 6 pages, 8 figures, published versio
Covariant and locally Lorentz-invariant varying speed of light theories
We propose definitions for covariance and local Lorentz invariance applicable
when the speed of light is allowed to vary. They have the merit of
retaining only those aspects of the usual definitions which are invariant under
unit transformations, and which can therefore legitimately represent the
outcome of an experiment. We then discuss some possibilities for invariant
actions governing the dynamics of such theories. We consider first the
classical action for matter fields and the effects of a changing upon
quantization. We discover a peculiar form of quantum particle creation due to a
varying . We then study actions governing the dynamics of gravitation and
the speed of light. We find the free, empty-space, no-gravity solution, to be
interpreted as the counterpart of Minkowksi space-time, and highlight its
similarities with Fock-Lorentz space-time. We also find flat-space string-type
solutions, in which near the string core is much higher. We label them
fast-tracks and compare them with gravitational wormholes. We finally discuss
general features of cosmological and black hole solutions, and digress on the
meaning of singularities in these theories.Comment: To be published in Physical Review
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