970 research outputs found
Gravitational wave signatures from kink proliferation on cosmic (super-) strings
Junctions on cosmic string loops give rise to the proliferation of sharp
kinks. We study the effect of this proliferation on the gravitational wave (GW)
signals emitted from string networks with junctions, assuming a scaling
solution. We calculate the rate of occurrence and the distribution in amplitude
of the GW bursts emitted at cusps and kinks in the frequency bands of LIGO and
LISA as a function of the string tension, the number of sharp kinks on loops
with junctions and the fraction of loops in the cosmological network which have
junctions. Combining our results with current observational constraints, we
find that pulsar data rule out a significant number of kinks on loops for
strings with tensions G\mu > 10^{-12}. By contrast, for smaller tensions
current observations allow for a large number of kinks on loops. If this is the
case, the incoherent superposition of small bursts emitted at kink-kink
encounters leads to an enhanced GW background that hides the strong individual
bursts from kinks and cusps.Comment: 32 pages, 13 figure
D-term Inflation and Nonperturbative Kahler Potential of Dilaton
We study the -term inflation scenario with a nonperturbative K\"ahler
potential of the dilaton field. Although the FI term which leads an
inflationary expansion is given by the derivative of the K\"ahler potential
with respect to the dilaton in heterotic string models with anomalous U(1), the
too large magnitude is problematic for a viable -term inflation. In this
paper, we point out that the K\"ahler potential with a nonperturbative term can
reduce the magnitude of FI term to desired values while both the dilaton
stabilization and -term domination in the potential are realized by
nonperturbative superpotential.Comment: 13 pages, latex, 3 figure
The Cosmological Moduli Problem, Supersymmetry Breaking and Stability in Postinflationary Cosmology
A survey of solutions to the cosmological moduli problem in string theory.
The only extant proposal which may work is Intermediate Scale Inflation as
proposed by Randall and Thomas. Supersymmetry preserving dynamics which could
give large masses to the moduli is strongly constrained by cosmology and
requires the existence of string vacuum states possessing properties different
from those of any known vacuuum. Such a mechanism cannot give mass to the
dilaton unless there are cancellations between different exponentially small
contributions to the superpotential. Our investigation also shows that
stationary points of the effective potential with negative vacuum energy do not
correspond to stationary solutions of the equations of postinflationary
cosmology. This suggests that supersymmetry breaking is a requirement for a
successful inflationary cosmology.Comment: harvma
Constraints on Embeddings
We show that the embedding of either a static or a time dependent maximally
3-symmetric brane with non-zero spatial curvature into a non-compactified
bulk does not yield exponential suppression of the geometry away from
the brane. Implications of this result for brane-localized gravity are
discussed.Comment: RevTeX, 9 pages (updated version v2, conclusions unchanged after
extension to the non-static case
LHC discovery potential for supersymmetry with \sqrt{s}=7 TeV and 5-30 fb^{-1}
We extend our earlier results delineating the supersymmetry (SUSY) reach of
the CERN Large Hadron Collider operating at a centre-of-mass energy \sqrt{s}=7
TeV to integrated luminosities in the range 5 - 30 fb^{-1}. Our results are
presented within the paradigm minimal supergravity model (mSUGRA or CMSSM).
Using a 6-dimensional grid of cuts for the optimization of signal to background
ratio -- including missing E_T-- we find for m(gluino) \sim m(squark) an LHC
5\sigma SUSY discovery reach of m(gluino) \sim 1.3,\ 1.4,\ 1.5 and 1.6 TeV for
5, 10, 20 and 30 fb^{-1}, respectively. For m(squark)>> m(gluino), the
corresponding reach is instead m(gluino)\sim 0.8,\ 0.9,\ 1.0 and 1.05 TeV, for
the same integrated luminosities.Comment: 7 pages with 2 .eps figure. In version 2, a new figure has been added
along with associated discussio
Cosmological Consequences of String Axions
Axion fluctuations generated during inflation lead to isocurvature and
non-Gaussian temperature fluctuations in the cosmic microwave background
radiation. Following a previous analysis for the model independent string axion
we consider the consequences of a measurement of these fluctuations for two
additional string axions. We do so independent of any cosmological assumptions
except for the axions being massless during inflation. The first axion has been
shown to solve the strong CP problem for most compactifications of the
heterotic string while the second axion, which does not solve the strong CP
problem, obeys a mass formula which is independent of the axion scale. We find
that if gravitational waves interpreted as arising from inflation are observed
by the PLANCK polarimetry experiment with a Hubble constant during inflation of
H_inf \apprge 10^13 GeV the existence of the first axion is ruled out and the
second axion cannot obey the scale independent mass formula. In an appendix we
quantitatively justify the often held assumption that temperature corrections
to the zero temperature QCD axion mass may be ignored for temperatures T
\apprle \Lambda_QCD.Comment: 27 pages, 4 figures; v2: References corrected; v3: Assumptions
simplified, minor corrections, conclusions unchange
Exploring the Expansion History of the Universe
Exploring the recent expansion history of the universe promises insights into
the cosmological model, the nature of dark energy, and potentially clues to
high energy physics theories and gravitation. We examine the extent to which
precision distance-redshift observations can map out the history, including the
acceleration-deceleration transition, and the components and equations of state
of the energy density. We consider the ability to distinguish between various
dynamical scalar field models for the dark energy, as well as higher dimension
and alternate gravity theories. Finally, we present a new, advantageous
parametrization for the study of dark energy.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figures, submitted to Phys. Rev. Letter
Temperature stability in the sub-milliHertz band with LISA Pathfinder
This article has been accepted for publication in "Monthly notices of the royal astronomical society" published by Oxford University Press.LISA Pathfinder (LPF) was a technology pioneering mission designed to test key technologies required for gravitational wave detection in space. In the low frequency regime (milliHertz and below), where space-based gravitational wave observatories will operate, temperature fluctuations play a crucial role since they can couple into the interferometric measurement and the test masses’ free-fall accuracy in many ways. A dedicated temperature measurement subsystem, with noise levels in 10¿µK¿Hz-1/2 down to 1¿mHz was part of the diagnostics unit onboard LPF. In this paper we report on the temperature measurements throughout mission operations, characterize the thermal environment, estimate transfer functions between different locations, and report temperature stability (and its time evolution) at frequencies as low as 10¿µHz, where typically values around 1¿K¿Hz-1/2 were measured.Peer ReviewedPreprin
Novel methods to measure the gravitational constant in space
We present two novel methods, tested by LISA Pathfinder, to measure the gravitational constant G for the first time in space. Experiment 1 uses electrostatic suspension forces to measure a change in acceleration of a test mass due to a displaced source mass. Experiment 2 measures a change in relative acceleration between two test masses due to a slowly varying fuel tank mass. Experiment 1 gave a value of G=6.71±0.42(×10-11)¿¿m3¿s-2¿kg-1 and experiment 2 gave 6.15±0.35(×10-11)¿¿m3¿s-2¿kg-1, both consistent with each other to 1s and with the CODATA 2014 recommended value of 6.67408±0.00031(×10-11)¿¿m3¿s-2¿kg-1 to 2s. We outline several ideas to improve the results for a future experiment, and we suggest that a measurement in space would isolate many terrestrial issues that could be responsible for the inconsistencies between recent measurements.Peer ReviewedPostprint (published version
LISA pathfinder micronewton cold gas thrusters: in-flight characterization
The LISA Pathfinder (LPF) mission has demonstrated the ability to limit and measure the fluctuations in acceleration between two free falling test masses down to sub-femto-g levels. One of the key elements to achieve such a level of residual acceleration is the drag free control. In this scheme the spacecraft is used as a shield against any external disturbances by adjusting its relative position to a reference test mass. The actuators used to move the spacecraft are cold gas micropropulsion thrusters. In this paper, we report in-flight characterization of these thrusters in term of noise and artefacts during science operations using all the metrology capabilities of LISA Pathfinder. Using the LISA Pathfinder test masses as an inertial reference frame, an average thruster noise of ~0.17¿¿µN/Hz is observed and decomposed into a common (coherent) and an uncorrelated component. The very low noise and stability of the onboard metrology system associated with the quietness of the space environment allowed the measurement of the thruster noise down to ~20¿¿µHz, more than an order of magnitude below any ground measurement. Spectral lines were observed around ~1.5¿¿mHz and its harmonics and around 55 and 70 mHz. They are associated with the cold gas system itself and possibly to a clock synchronization issue. The thruster noise-floor exhibits an excess of ~70% compared to characterization that have been made on ground on a single unit and without the feeding system. However this small excess has no impact on the LPF mission performance and is compatible with the noise budget for the upcoming LISA gravitational wave observatory. Over the whole mission, nominal, and extension, the thrusters showed remarkable stability for both the science operations and the different maneuvers necessary to maintain LPF on its orbit around L1. It is therefore concluded that a similar cold gas system would be a viable propulsion system for the future LISA mission.Peer ReviewedPostprint (author's final draft
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