Naturalness in Cosmological Initial Conditions

We propose a novel approach to the problem of constraining cosmological initial conditions. Within the framework of effective field theory, we classify initial conditions in terms of boundary terms added to the effective action describing the cosmological evolution below Planckian energies. These boundary terms can be thought of as spacelike branes which may support extra instantaneous degrees of freedom and extra operators. Interactions and renormalization of these boundary terms allow us to apply to the boundary terms the field-theoretical requirement of naturalness, i.e. stability under radiative corrections. We apply this requirement to slow-roll inflation with non-adiabatic initial conditions, and to cyclic cosmology. This allows us to define in a precise sense when some of these models are fine-tuned. We also describe how to parametrize in a model-independent way non-Gaussian initial conditions; we show that in some cases they are both potentially observable and pass our naturalness requirement.Comment: 35 pages, 8 figure

Theory of gravitation theories: a no-progress report

Already in the 1970s there where attempts to present a set of ground rules, sometimes referred to as a theory of gravitation theories, which theories of gravity should satisfy in order to be considered viable in principle and, therefore, interesting enough to deserve further investigation. From this perspective, an alternative title of the present paper could be ``why are we still unable to write a guide on how to propose viable alternatives to general relativity?''. Attempting to answer this question, it is argued here that earlier efforts to turn qualitative statements, such as the Einstein Equivalence Principle, into quantitative ones, such as the metric postulates, stand on rather shaky grounds -- probably contrary to popular belief -- as they appear to depend strongly on particular representations of the theory. This includes ambiguities in the identification of matter and gravitational fields, dependence of frequently used definitions, such as those of the stress-energy tensor or classical vacuum, on the choice of variables, etc. Various examples are discussed and possible approaches to this problem are pointed out. In the course of this study, several common misconceptions related to the various forms of the Equivalence Principle, the use of conformal frames and equivalence between theories are clarified.Comment: Invited paper in the Gravity Research Foundation 2007 special issue to be published by Int. J. Mod. Phys.

Vacuum energy induced by an impenetrable flux tube of finite radius

We consider the effect of the magnetic field background in the form of a tube of the finite transverse size on the vacuum of the quantized charged massive scalar field which is subject to the Dirichlet boundary condition at the edge of the tube. The vacuum energy is induced, being periodic in the value of the magnetic flux enclosed in the tube. Our previous study in J. Phys. A: Vol.43, 175401 (2010) is extended to the case of smaller radius of the tube and larger distances from it. The dependence of the vacuum energy density on the distance from the tube and on the coupling to the space-time curvature scalar is comprehensively analyzed.Comment: 11 pages, 8 figures, journal version, abstract extended. arXiv admin note: substantial text overlap with arXiv:0911.287

Extended Quintessence with non-minimally coupled phantom scalar field

We investigate evolutional paths of an extended quintessence with a non-minimally coupled phantom scalar field $\psi$ to the Ricci curvature. The dynamical system methods are used to investigate typical regimes of dynamics at the late time. We demonstrate that there are two generic types of evolutional scenarios which approach the attractor (a focus or a node type critical point) in the phase space: the quasi-oscillatory and monotonic trajectories approach to the attractor which represents the FRW model with the cosmological constant. We demonstrate that dynamical system admits invariant two-dimensional submanifold and discussion that which cosmological scenario is realized depends on behavior of the system on the phase plane $(\psi, \psi')$. We formulate simple conditions on the value of coupling constant $\xi$ for which trajectories tend to the focus in the phase plane and hence damping oscillations around the mysterious value $w=-1$. We describe this condition in terms of slow-roll parameters calculated at the critical point. We discover that the generic trajectories in the focus-attractor scenario come from the unstable node. It is also investigated the exact form of the parametrization of the equation of state parameter $w(z)$ (directly determined from dynamics) which assumes a different form for both scenarios.Comment: revtex4, 15 pages, 9 figures; (v2) published versio

Conformally invariant wave-equations and massless fields in de Sitter spacetime

Conformally invariant wave equations in de Sitter space, for scalar and vector fields, are introduced in the present paper. Solutions of their wave equations and the related two-point functions, in the ambient space notation, have been calculated. The ``Hilbert'' space structure and the field operator, in terms of coordinate independent de Sitter plane waves, have been defined. The construction of the paper is based on the analyticity in the complexified pseudo-Riemanian manifold, presented first by Bros et al.. Minkowskian limits of these functions are analyzed. The relation between the ambient space notation and the intrinsic coordinates is then studied in the final stage.Comment: 21 pages, LaTeX, some details adde

"Massless" vector field in de Sitter Universe

In the present work the massless vector field in the de Sitter (dS) space has been quantized. "Massless" is used here by reference to conformal invariance and propagation on the dS light-cone whereas "massive" refers to those dS fields which contract at zero curvature unambiguously to massive fields in Minkowski space. Due to the gauge invariance of the massless vector field, its covariant quantization requires an indecomposable representation of the de Sitter group and an indefinite metric quantization. We will work with a specific gauge fixing which leads to the simplest one among all possible related Gupta-Bleuler structures. The field operator will be defined with the help of coordinate independent de Sitter waves (the modes) which are simple to manipulate and most adapted to group theoretical matters. The physical states characterized by the divergencelessness condition will for instance be easy to identify. The whole construction is based on analyticity requirements in the complexified pseudo-Riemanian manifold for the modes and the two-point function.Comment: 33 pages, 3 figure

Manifestation of the Arnol'd Diffusion in Quantum Systems

We study an analog of the classical Arnol'd diffusion in a quantum system of two coupled non-linear oscillators one of which is governed by an external periodic force with two frequencies. In the classical model this very weak diffusion happens in a narrow stochastic layer along the coupling resonance, and leads to an increase of total energy of the system. We show that the quantum dynamics of wave packets mimics, up to some extent, global properties of the classical Arnol'd diffusion. This specific diffusion represents a new type of quantum dynamics, and may be observed, for example, in 2D semiconductor structures (quantum billiards) perturbed by time-periodic external fields.Comment: RevTex, 4 pages including 7 ps-figures, corrected forma

The false vacuum bubble nucleation due to a nonminimally coupled scalar field

We study the possibility of forming the false vacuum bubble nucleated within the true vacuum background via the true-to-false vacuum phase transition in curved spacetime. We consider a semiclassical Euclidean bubble in the Einstein theory of gravity with a nonminimally coupled scalar field. In this paper we present the numerical computations as well as the approximate analytical computations. We mention the evolution of the false vacuum bubble after nucleation.Comment: 23 pages, 12 figures, References added, minor correctio

Heterogeneous deformation during electromagnetic ring expansion test

High speed forming methods become attractive in manufacturing and it significantl reduces the cost and energy requirements. Conventional manufacturing processes such as forging, forming, stamping and cutting of metals typically involve a strain rate of 10 2 – 10 4 s-1 which includes high energy rate fabrication (HERF) methods [1]. During advanced manufacturing methods such as high speed forming and high speed welding processes, certain local regions (e.g. interfaces) of materials could also experience significantly high strain rate (> 10 4 s-1). In order to understand the physical behaviours of materials and to design/control/optimise, such manufacturing processes that require an appropriate technique to capture the material’s viscoplastic property under the high strain rate deformation. Therein, the electromagnetic ring expansion test becomes a promising method to characterize the material behaviours under the high strain rate deformation. The ring expansion is caused by Lorentz force that is generated due to the magnetic induction on the ring. However, the realistic nature of the electromagnetic ring expansion test is quite complex because of the coupling physics between electromagnetic-thermal-mechanical components. Therefore, in this study we evaluate certain controlling parameters which govern the fundamental behaviour of the electromagnetic ring expansion test. Particularly the rotation and inhomogeneous deformation of the ring are noticeably observed and these phenomena require extra attention

Renormalization of initial conditions and the trans-Planckian problem of inflation

Understanding how a field theory propagates the information contained in a given initial state is essential for quantifying the sensitivity of the cosmic microwave background to physics above the Hubble scale during inflation. Here we examine the renormalization of a scalar theory with nontrivial initial conditions in the simpler setting of flat space. The renormalization of the bulk theory proceeds exactly as for the standard vacuum state. However, the short distance features of the initial conditions can introduce new divergences which are confined to the surface on which the initial conditions are imposed. We show how the addition of boundary counterterms removes these divergences and induces a renormalization group flow in the space of initial conditions.Comment: 22 pages, 4 eps figures, uses RevTe