Baryogenesis in extended inflation. 2: Baryogenesis via primordial black holes

Baryogenesis at the end of extended inflation is studied. Extended inflation is brought to an end by the collisions of bubble walls surrounding regions of true vacuum, a process which produces particles well out of thermal equilibrium. The possibility that the wall collisions may provide a significant density of primordial black holes is considered and their possible role in generating a baryon asymmetry is examined

On the reliability of inflaton potential reconstruction

If primordial scalar and tensor perturbation spectra can be inferred from observations of the cosmic background radiation and large-scale structure, then one might hope to reconstruct a unique single-field inflaton potential capable of generating the observed spectra. In this paper we examine conditions under which such a potential can be reliably reconstructed. For it to be possible at all, the spectra must be well fit by a Taylor series expansion. A complete reconstruction requires a statistically-significant tensor mode to be measured in the microwave background. We find that the observational uncertainties dominate the theoretical error from use of the slow-roll approximation, and conclude that the reconstruction procedure will never insidiously lead to an irrelevant potential.Comment: 16 page LaTeX file with eight postscript figures embedded with epsf; no special macros neede

Curvaton reheating: an application to braneworld inflation

The curvaton was introduced recently as a distinct inflationary mechanism for generating adiabatic density perturbations. Implicit in that scenario is that the curvaton offers a new mechanism for reheating after inflation, as it is a form of energy density not diluted by the inflationary expansion. We consider curvaton reheating in the context of a braneworld inflation model, {\em steep inflation}, which features a novel use of the braneworld to give a new mechanism for ending inflation. The original steep inflation model featured reheating by gravitational particle production, but the inefficiency of that process brings observational difficulties. We demonstrate here that the phenomenology of steep inflation is much improved by curvaton reheating.Comment: 8 pages RevTeX4 file with two figures incorporated. Improved referencing, matches PRD accepted versio

Exponential potentials and cosmological scaling solutions

We present a phase-plane analysis of cosmologies containing a barotropic fluid with equation of state $p_\gamma = (\gamma-1) \rho_\gamma$, plus a scalar field $\phi$ with an exponential potential $V \propto \exp(-\lambda \kappa \phi)$ where $\kappa^2 = 8\pi G$. In addition to the well-known inflationary solutions for $\lambda^2 3\gamma$ in which the scalar field energy density tracks that of the barotropic fluid (which for example might be radiation or dust). We show that the scaling solutions are the unique late-time attractors whenever they exist. The fluid-dominated solutions, where $V(\phi)/\rho_\gamma \to 0$ at late times, are always unstable (except for the cosmological constant case $\gamma = 0$). The relative energy density of the fluid and scalar field depends on the steepness of the exponential potential, which is constrained by nucleosynthesis to $\lambda^2 > 20$. We show that standard inflation models are unable to solve this `relic density' problem.Comment: 6 pages RevTeX file with four figures incorporated (uses RevTeX and epsf). Matches published versio

Extended Inflation with a Curvature-Coupled Inflaton

We examine extended inflation models enhanced by the addition of a coupling between the inflaton field and the space-time curvature. We examine two types of model, where the underlying inflaton potential takes on second-order and first-order form respectively. One aim is to provide models which satisfy the solar system constraints on the Brans--Dicke parameter $\omega$. This constraint has proven very problematic in previous extended inflation models, and we find circumstances where it can be successfully evaded, though the constraint must be carefully assessed in our model and can be much stronger than the usual $\omega > 500$. In the simplest versions of the model, one may avoid the need to introduce a mass for the Brans--Dicke field in order to ensure that it takes on the correct value at the present epoch, as seems to be required in hyperextended inflation. We also briefly discuss aspects of the formation of topological defects in the inflaton field itself.Comment: 24 pages, LaTeX (no figures), to appear, Physical Review D, mishandling of the solar system constraint on extended gravity theories corrected, SUSSEX-AST 93/6-

Black holes and gravitational waves in string cosmology

Pre--big bang models of inflation based on string cosmology produce a stochastic gravitational wave background whose spectrum grows with decreasing wavelength, and which may be detectable using interferometers such as LIGO. We point out that the gravitational wave spectrum is closely tied to the density perturbation spectrum, and that the condition for producing observable gravitational waves is very similar to that for producing an observable density of primordial black holes. Detection of both would provide strong support to the string cosmology scenario.Comment: 6 pages RevTeX fil

False Vacuum Inflation with a Quartic Potential

We consider a variant of Hybrid Inflation, where inflation is driven by two interacting scalar fields, one of which has a `Mexican hat' potential and the other a quartic potential. Given the appropriate initial conditions one of the fields can be trapped in a false vacuum state, supported by couplings to the other field. The energy of this vacuum can be used to drive inflation, which ends when the vacuum decays to one of its true minima. Depending on parameters, it is possible for inflation to proceed via two separate epochs, with the potential temporarily steepening sufficiently to suspend inflation. We use numerical simulations to analyse the possibilities, and emphasise the shortcomings of the slow-roll approximation for analysing this scenario. We also calculate the density perturbations produced, which can have a spectral index greater than one.Comment: 10 pages, RevTeX 3.0, no figure

The Inflationary Energy Scale

The energy scale of inflation is of much interest, as it suggests the scale of grand unified physics and also governs whether cosmological events such as topological defect formation can occur after inflation. The COBE results are used to limit the energy scale of inflation at around 60 $e$-foldings from the end of inflation. An exact dynamical treatment based on the Hamilton-Jacobi equations is then used to translate this into limits on the energy scale at the end of inflation. General constraints are given, and then tighter constraints based on physically motivated assumptions regarding the allowed forms of density perturbation and gravitational wave spectra. These are also compared with the values of familiar models.Comment: 17 pages (plus three figures, available from the author as hard copies only), standard LaTeX, SUSSEX-AST 93/7-

A Polarization Pursuers' Guide

We calculate the detectability of the polarization of the cosmic microwave background (CMB) as a function of the sky coverage, angular resolution, and instrumental sensitivity for a hypothetical experiment. We consider the gradient component of the polarization from density perturbations (scalar modes) and the curl component from gravitational waves (tensor modes). We show that the amplitude (and thus the detectability) of the polarization from density perturbations is roughly the same in any model as long as the model fits the big-bang-nucleosynthesis (BBN) baryon density and degree-scale anisotropy measurements. The degree-scale polarization is smaller (and accordingly more difficult to detect) if the baryon density is higher. In some cases, the signal-to-noise for polarization (both from scalar and tensor modes) may be improved in a fixed-time experiment with a smaller survey area.Comment: 18 pages, 6 figure

Observational constraints on braneworld chaotic inflation

We examine observational constraints on chaotic inflation models in the Randall-Sundrum Type II braneworld. If inflation takes place in the high-energy regime, the perturbations produced by the quadratic potential are further from scale-invariance than in the standard cosmology, in the quartic case more or less unchanged, while for potentials of greater exponent the trend is reversed. We test these predictions against a data compilation including the WMAP measurements of microwave anisotropies and the 2dF galaxy power spectrum. While in the standard cosmology the quartic potential is at the border of what the data allow and all higher powers excluded, we find that in the high-energy regime of braneworld inflation even the quadratic case is under strong observational pressure. We also investigate the intermediate regime where the brane tension is comparable to the inflationary energy scale, where the deviations from scale-invariance prove to be greater.Comment: 5 pages RevTeX4 file with three figures incorporated. Minor changes to match version accepted by Physical Review