Non-Gaussianity from isocurvature perturbations

We develop a formalism to study non-Gaussianity in both curvature and isocurvature perturbations. It is shown that non-Gaussianity in the isocurvature perturbation between dark matter and photons leaves distinct signatures in the CMB temperature fluctuations, which may be confirmed in future experiments, or possibly, even in the currently available observational data. As an explicit example, we consider the QCD axion and show that it can actually induce sizable non-Gaussianity for the inflationary scale, H_{inf} = O(10^9 - 10^{11})GeV.Comment: 24 pages, 6 figures; references added; version to appear in JCA

Non-Gaussianity from Symmetry

We point out that a light scalar field fluctuating around a symmetry-enhaced point can generate large non-Gaussianity in density fluctuations. We name such a particle as an "ungaussiton", a scalar field dominantly produced by the quantum fluctuations,generating sizable non-Gaussianity in the density fluctuations. We derive a consistency relation between the bispectrum and the trispectrum, tau_NL = 10^3 f_NL^(4/3), which can be extended to arbitrary high order correlation functions. If such a relation is confirmed by future observations, it will strongly support this mechanism.Comment: 26 pages, 1 figure;v2 discussion and references added. To appear in JCA

Accelerated expansion from structure formation

We discuss the physics of backreaction-driven accelerated expansion. Using the exact equations for the behaviour of averages in dust universes, we explain how large-scale smoothness does not imply that the effect of inhomogeneity and anisotropy on the expansion rate is small. We demonstrate with an analytical toy model how gravitational collapse can lead to acceleration. We find that the conjecture of the accelerated expansion being due to structure formation is in agreement with the general observational picture of structures in the universe, and more quantitative work is needed to make a detailed comparison.Comment: 44 pages, 1 figure. Expanded treatment of topics from the Gravity Research Foundation contest essay astro-ph/0605632. v2: Added references, clarified wordings. v3: Published version. Minor changes and corrections, added a referenc