Tensor to scalar ratio of perturbation amplitudes and inflaton dynamics

For the inflaton perturbations it is shown that the evolution of the difference between the spectral indices can be translated into information on the scale dependence of the tensor to scalar amplitudes ratio, $r$, and how the scalar field potential can be derived from that information. Examples are given where $r$ converges to a constant value during inflation but dynamics are rather different from the power--law model. Cases are presented where a constant $r$ is not characteristic of the inflationary dynamics though the resulting perturbation spectra are consistent with the CMB and LSS data. The inflaton potential corresponding to $r$ given by a n--th order polynomial of the e--folds number is derived in quadratures expressions. Since the observable difference between the spectral indices evaluated at a pivot scale yields information about the linear term of that polynomial, the first order case is explicitly written down. The solutions show features beyond the exponential form corresponding to power--law inflation and can be matched with current observational data.Comment: 5 two-columns pages, two figures, RevTex4. Minor modifications. Two references adde

Turbulence and Chaos in Anti-de-Sitter Gravity

Due to the AdS/CFT correspondence the question of instability of Anti-de-Sitter spacetimes sits in the intersection of mathematical and numerical relativity, string theory, field theory and condensed matter physics. In this essay we revisit that important question emphasizing the power of spectral methods and highlighting the effectiveness of standard techniques for studying nonlinear dynamical systems. In particular we display explicitly how the problem can be modeled as a system on nonlinearly coupled harmonic oscillators. We highlight some of the many open questions that stem from this result and point out that a full understanding will necessarily required the interdisciplinary cooperation of various communities.Comment: 6 pages, 12 figures. Essay awarded honorable mention in the Gravity Research Foundation essay competition 201

Higher order corrections to primordial spectra from cosmological inflation

We calculate power spectra of cosmological perturbations at high accuracy for two classes of inflation models. We classify the models according to the behaviour of the Hubble distance during inflation. Our approximation works if the Hubble distance can be approximated either to be a constant or to grow linearly with cosmic time. Many popular inflationary models can be described in this way, e.g., chaotic inflation with a monomial potential, power-law inflation and inflation at a maximum. Our scheme of approximation does not rely on a slow-roll expansion. Thus we can make accurate predictions for some of the models with large slow-roll parameters.Comment: 13 pages, 1 figure; section on consistency relations of inflation added; accepted by Physics Letters

Inflation with a constant ratio of scalar and tensor perturbation amplitudes

The single scalar field inflationary models that lead to scalar and tensor perturbation spectra with amplitudes varying in direct proportion to one another are reconstructed by solving the Stewart-Lyth inverse problem to next-to-leading order in the slow-roll approximation. The potentials asymptote at high energies to an exponential form, corresponding to power law inflation, but diverge from this model at low energies, indicating that power law inflation is a repellor in this case. This feature implies that a fine-tuning of initial conditions is required if such models are to reproduce the observations. The required initial conditions might be set through the eternal inflation mechanism. If this is the case, it will imply that the spectral indices must be nearly constant, making the underlying model observationally indistinguishable from power law inflation.Comment: 20 pages, 7 figures. Major changes to the Introduction following referee's comments. One figure added. Some other minor changes. No conclusion was modifie

Black Holes with Varying Flux: A Numerical Approach

We present a numerical study of type IIB supergravity solutions with varying Ramond-Ramond flux. We construct solutions that have a regular horizon and contain nontrivial five- and three-form fluxes. These solutions are holographically dual to the deconfined phase of confining field theories at finite temperature. As a calibration of the numerical method we first numerically reproduce various analytically known solutions including singular and regular nonextremal D3 branes, the Klebanov-Tseytlin solution and its singular nonextremal generalization. The horizon of the solutions we construct is of the precise form of nonextremal D3 branes. In the asymptotic region far away from the horizon we observe a logarithmic behavior similar to that of the Klebanov-Tseytlin solution.Comment: 40 pages, 15 figure