The role of topologigal defects in cosmology

Abstract

Topological defects are involved in a plethora of physical and astrophysical phenomena. In these lectures, I will review the r\^ ole they could play in the large-scale structure formation and the anisotropies of the cosmic microwave background, as well as in various high energy phenomena, including baryon number asymmetry, ultra-high energy cosmic rays, and gamma ray bursts. I will then summarize the gravitational effects of cosmic strings. Finally, I will briefly discuss the r\^ ole of topological defects in brane world cosmology.Comment: Invited lectures in the NATO ASI / COSLAB (ESF) School ``Patterns of symmetry breaking'', September 2002 (Cracow). 28 page