219 research outputs found
Supergravity Higgs Inflation and Shift Symmetry in Electroweak Theory
We present a model of inflation in a supergravity framework in the Einstein
frame where the Higgs field of the next to minimal supersymmetric standard
model (NMSSM) plays the role of the inflaton. Previous attempts which assumed
non-minimal coupling to gravity failed due to a tachyonic instability of the
singlet field during inflation. A canonical K\"{a}hler potential with
\textit{minimal coupling} to gravity can resolve the tachyonic instability but
runs into the -problem. We suggest a model which is free of the
-problem due to an additional coupling in the K\"{a}hler potential which
is allowed by the Standard Model gauge group. This induces directions in the
potential which we call K-flat. For a certain value of the new coupling in the
(N)MSSM, the K\"{a}hler potential is special, because it can be associated with
a certain shift symmetry for the Higgs doublets, a generalization of the shift
symmetry for singlets in earlier models. We find that K-flat direction has
This shift symmetry is broken by interactions coming from
the superpotential and gauge fields. This direction fails to produce successful
inflation in the MSSM but produces a viable model in the NMSSM. The model is
specifically interesting in the Peccei-Quinn (PQ) limit of the NMSSM. In this
limit the model can be confirmed or ruled-out not just by cosmic microwave
background observations but also by axion searches.Comment: matches the published version at JCA
Do stochastic inhomogeneities affect dark-energy precision measurements?
The effect of a stochastic background of cosmological perturbations on the
luminosity-redshift relation is computed to second order through a recently
proposed covariant and gauge-invariant light-cone averaging procedure. The
resulting expressions are free from both ultraviolet and infrared divergences,
implying that such perturbations cannot mimic a sizable fraction of dark
energy. Different averages are estimated and depend on the particular function
of the luminosity distance being averaged. The energy flux, being minimally
affected by perturbations at large z, is proposed as the best choice for
precision estimates of dark-energy parameters. Nonetheless, its irreducible
(stochastic) variance induces statistical errors on \Omega_{\Lambda}(z)
typically lying in the few-percent range.Comment: 5 pages, 3 figures. Comments and references added. Typos corrected.
Version accepted for publication in Phys. Rev. Let
Probing the inflaton: Small-scale power spectrum constraints from measurements of the cosmic microwave background energy spectrum
In the early universe, energy stored in small-scale density perturbations is quickly dissipated by Silk damping, a process that inevitably generates μ- and y-type spectral distortions of the cosmic microwave background (CMB). These spectral distortions depend on the shape and amplitude of the primordial power spectrum at wavenumbers k ≲ 104 Mpc-1. Here, we study constraints on the primordial power spectrum derived from COBE/FIRAS and forecasted for PIXIE. We show that measurements of μ and y impose strong bounds on the integrated small-scale power, and we demonstrate how to compute these constraints using k-space window functions that account for the effects of thermalization and dissipation physics. We show that COBE/FIRAS places a robust upper limit on the amplitude of the small-scale power spectrum. This limit is about three orders of magnitude stronger than the one derived from primordial black holes in the same scale range. Furthermore, this limit could be improved by another three orders of magnitude with PIXIE, potentially opening up a new window to early universe physics. To illustrate the power of these constraints, we consider several generic models for the small-scale power spectrum predicted by different inflation scenarios, including running-mass inflation models and inflation scenarios with episodes of particle production. PIXIE could place very tight constraints on these scenarios, potentially even ruling out running-mass inflation models if no distortion is detected. We also show that inflation models with sub-Planckian field excursion that generate detectable tensor perturbations should simultaneously produce a large CMB spectral distortion, a link that could potentially be established with PIXIE
General Analysis of Inflation in the Jordan frame Supergravity
We study various inflation models in the Jordan frame supergravity with a
logarithmic Kahler potential. We find that, in a class of inflation models
containing an additional singlet in the superpotential, three types of
inflation can be realized: the Higgs-type inflation, power-law inflation, and
chaotic inflation with/without a running kinetic term. The former two are
possible if the holomorphic function dominates over the non-holomorphic one in
the frame function, while the chaotic inflation occurs when both are
comparable. Interestingly, the fractional-power potential can be realized by
the running kinetic term. We also discuss the implication for the Higgs
inflation in supergravity.Comment: 16 pages, 1 figur
Nonlinear relativistic corrections to cosmological distances, redshift and gravitational lensing magnification. I - Key results
The next generation of telescopes will usher in an era of precision
cosmology, capable of determining the cosmological model to beyond the percent
level. For this to be effective, the theoretical model must be understood to at
least the same level of precision. A range of subtle relativistic effects
remain to be explored theoretically, and offer the potential for probing
general relativity in this new regime. We present the distance-redshift
relation to second order in cosmological perturbation theory for a general dark
energy model. This relation determines the magnification of sources at high
precision, as well as redshift space distortions in the mildly non-linear
regime. We identify a range of new lensing effects, including:
double-integrated and nonlinear integrated Sach-Wolfe contributions, transverse
Doppler effects, lensing from the induced vector mode and gravitational wave
backgrounds, in addition to lensing from the second-order potential.
Modifications to Doppler lensing from redshift-space distortions are
identified. Finally, we find a new double-coupling between the density
fluctuations integrated along the line of sight, and gradients in the density
fluctuations coupled to transverse velocities along the line of sight. These
can be large and thus offer important new probes of gravitational lensing and
general relativity. This paper accompanies arXiv:1402.1933, where a
comprehensive derivation is given.Comment: 7 pages. v2 has significant presentational changes. v3 has new
discussion on the magnitude of the corrections, plus minor corrections, and
is the version to appear in CQ
Higgs Chaotic Inflation in Standard Model and NMSSM
We construct a chaotic inflation model in which the Higgs fields play the
role of the inflaton in the standard model as well as in the singlet extension
of the supersymmetric standard model. The key idea is to allow a non-canonical
kinetic term for the Higgs field. The model is a realization of the recently
proposed running kinetic inflation, in which the coefficient of the kinetic
term grows as the inflaton field. The inflaton potential depends on the
structure of the Higgs kinetic term. For instance, the inflaton potential is
proportional to phi^2 and phi^{2/3} in the standard model and NMSSM,
respectively. It is also possible to have a flatter inflaton potential.Comment: 5 pages. v2:discussion and references adde
Cosmic Microwave Background Observables of Small Field Models of Inflation
We construct a class of single small field models of inflation that can
predict, contrary to popular wisdom, an observable gravitational wave signal in
the cosmic microwave background anisotropies. The spectral index, its running,
the tensor to scalar ratio and the number of e-folds can cover all the
parameter space currently allowed by cosmological observations. A unique
feature of models in this class is their ability to predict a negative spectral
index running in accordance with recent cosmic microwave background
observations. We discuss the new class of models from an effective field theory
perspective and show that if the dimensionless trilinear coupling is small, as
required for consistency, then the observed spectral index running implies a
high scale of inflation and hence an observable gravitational wave signal. All
the models share a distinct prediction of higher power at smaller scales,
making them easy targets for detection.Comment: 13 pages, 3 figures, added numerical analysis and discussion on the
properties of the spectra. Version to be published in JCA
A Field Range Bound for General Single-Field Inflation
We explore the consequences of a detection of primordial tensor fluctuations
for general single-field models of inflation. Using the effective theory of
inflation, we propose a generalization of the Lyth bound. Our bound applies to
all single-field models with two-derivative kinetic terms for the scalar
fluctuations and is always stronger than the corresponding bound for slow-roll
models. This shows that non-trivial dynamics can't evade the Lyth bound. We
also present a weaker, but completely universal bound that holds whenever the
Null Energy Condition (NEC) is satisfied at horizon crossing.Comment: 16 page
Backreaction on the luminosity-redshift relation from gauge invariant light-cone averaging
Using a recently proposed gauge invariant formulation of light-cone
averaging, together with adapted "geodesic light-cone" coordinates, we show how
an "induced backreaction" effect emerges, in general, from correlated
fluctuations in the luminosity distance and covariant integration measure.
Considering a realistic stochastic spectrum of inhomogeneities of primordial
(inflationary) origin we find that both the induced backreaction on the
luminosity-redshift relation and the dispersion are larger than naively
expected. On the other hand the former, at least to leading order and in the
linear perturbative regime, cannot account by itself for the observed effects
of dark energy at large-redshifts. A full second-order calculation, or even
better a reliable estimate of contributions from the non-linear regime, appears
to be necessary before firm conclusions on the correct interpretation of the
data can be drawn.Comment: 22 pages, 4 figures. Comments and references added, Fig. 1 modified.
Version accepted for publication in JCA
Quantum Gravity Constraints on Inflation
We study quantum gravity constraints on inflationary model building. Our
approach is based on requiring the entropy associated to a given inflationary
model to be less than that of the de Sitter entropy. We give two prescriptions
for determining the inflationary entropy, based on either `bits per unit area'
or entanglement entropy. The existence of transPlanckian flat directions,
necessary for large tensor modes in the CMB, correlates with an inflationary
entropy greater than that allowed by de Sitter space. Independently these
techniques also constrain or exclude de Sitter models with large-rank gauge
groups and high UV cutoffs, such as racetrack inflation or the KKLT
construction.Comment: 22 pages; v2 references adde
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