Vacuum Stability in the Early Universe and the Backreaction of Classical Gravity
Tommi Markkanen
备注：
12 pages, 6 figures, 1 table. Proceedings for the meeting 'Higgs Cosmology' (27-28.3.2017). An updated version was accepted for publication at Philos. Trans. A
In the case of a metastable electroweak vacuum the quantum corrected effective potential plays a crucial role in the potential instability of the Standard Model. In the Early Universe, in particular during inflation and reheating, this instability can be triggered leading to catastrophic vacuum decay. We discuss how the large spacetime curvature of the Early Universe can be incorporated in the calculation and in many cases significantly modify the flat space prediction. The two key new elements are the unavoidable generation of the non-minimal coupling between the Higgs field and the scalar curvature of gravity and a curvature induced contribution to the running of the constants. For the minimal set up of the Standard Model and a decoupled inflation sector we show how a metastable vacuum can lead to very tight bounds for the non-minimal coupling. We also discuss a novel and very much related dark matter generation mechanism.
We study backreaction in dust universes using exact equations which do not rely on perturbation theory, concentrating on theoretical and observational constraints. In particular, we discuss the recent suggestion (in hep-th/0503117) that superhorizon perturbations could explain present-day accelerated expansion as a useful example which can be ruled out. We note that a backreaction explanation of late-time acceleration will have to involve spatial curvature and subhorizon perturbations.
Inflation generically produces primordial gravitational waves with a red spectral tilt. In this paper we calculate the backreaction produced by these gravitational waves on the expansion of the universe. We find that in radiation domination the backreaction acts as a relativistic fluid, while in matter domination a small dark energy emerges with an equation of state w=-8/9.
As originally described by Rubakov, particles are produced during the tunneling of a metastable quantum field. We propose to extend his formalism to compute the backreaction of these particles on the semiclassical decay probability of the field. The idea is to integrate out the external bath of particles by computing the reduced density matrix of the system. Following this approach, we derive an explicit correction factor in the specific case of scalar particle production in flat spacetime. In this given framework, we conclude that the backreaction is ultraviolet finite and enhances the decay …
In order to explore the generic properties of a backreaction model for explaining the accelerated expansion of the Universe, we exploit two metrics to describe the late time Universe. Since the standard FLRW metric cannot precisely describe the late time Universe on small scales, the template metric with an evolving curvature parameter $κ_{\mathcal{D}}(t)$ is employed. However, we doubt the validity of the prescription for $κ_{\mathcal{D}}$, which motivates us apply observational Hubble parameter data (OHD) to constrain parameters in dust cosmology. First, for FLRW metric, by getting best-fit …
In an inhomogeneous universe, an observer associated with a particular matter field does not necessarily measure the same cosmological evolution as an observer in a homogeneous and isotropic universe. Here we consider, in the context of a chaotic inflationary background model, a class of observers associated with a "clock field" for which we use a light test field. We compute the effective expansion rate and fluid equation of state in a gauge invariant way, taking into account the quantum fluctuations of the long wavelength modes, and working up to second order in perturbation theory and in th…
Dynamical backreaction of a mass-acquiring scalar field on first-order phase transitions
International Centre for Theoretical Physics Asia-Pacific, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences（亚太理论物理中心，中国科学院大学）；Taiji Laboratory for Gravitational Wave Universe, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences（太极引力波宇宙实验室，中国科学院大学）；Institute of Theoretical Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences（中国科学院理论物理研究所）；School of Physical Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences（中国科学院大学物理科学学院）；School of Fundamental Physics and Mathematical Sciences, Hangzhou Institute for Advanced Study, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences（中国科学院大学杭州高等研究院基础物理与数学学院）
Particle creation leading to Hawking radiation is produced by the changing gravitational field of the collapsing star. The two main initial conditions in the far past placed on the quantum field from which particles arise, are the Hartle Hawking vacuum and the Unruh vacuum. The former leads to a time symmetric thermal bath of radiation, while the latter to a flux of radiation coming out of the collapsing star. The energy of Hawking radiation in the interior of the collapsing star is negative and equal in magnitude to its value at future infinity. This work investigates the backreaction of Hawk…
We discuss Preheating after an inflationary stage driven by the Standard Model (SM) Higgs field non-minimally coupled to gravity. We find that Preheating is driven by a complex process in which perturbative and non-perturbative effects occur simultaneously. The Higgs field, initially an oscillating coherent condensate, produces non-perturbatively W and Z gauge fields. These decay very rapidly into fermions, thus preventing gauge bosons to accumulate and, consequently, blocking the usual parametric resonance. The energy transferred into the fermionic species is, nevertheless, not enough to rehe…
We study two different initial conditions for fermions for the problem of pair production of fermions coupled to a classical electromagnetic field with backreaction in \oneplusone boost-invariant coordinates. Both of these conditions are consistent with fermions initially in a vacuum state. We present results for the proper time evolution of the electric field $E$, the current, the matter energy density, and the pressure as a function of the proper time for these two cases. We also determine the interpolating number density as a function of the proper time. We find that when we use a "first or…
We calculate a general effective stress-energy tensor induced by cosmological inhomogeneity in effective theories of gravity where the action is Taylor-expandable in the Riemann tensor and covariant derivatives of the Riemann tensor. This is of interest as an effective fluid that might provide an alternative to the cosmological constant, but it also applies to gravitational waves. We use an adaptation of Green and Wald's weak-averaging framework, which averages over perturbations in the field equation where the perturbation length scales are small compared to the averaging scale. In this adapt…
We study how the hot Universe evolves and acquires the prevailing vacuum state, demonstrating that in specific conditions which are believed to apply, the Universe becomes frozen into the state with the smallest value of Higgs vacuum field $v=\langle h\rangle$, even if this is not the state of lowest energy. This supports the false vacuum dark energy $Λ$-model. Under several likely hypotheses we determine the temperature in the evolution of the Universe at which two vacuua $v_1, v_2$ can swap between being true and false. We evaluate the dynamical surface pressure on domain walls between low a…
We study the dynamical evolution of coupled one- and two-point functions of a scalar field in the 2PI framework at the Hartree approximation, including backreaction from out-of-equilibrium modes. We renormalize the 2PI equations of motion in an on-shell scheme in terms of physical parameters. We present the Hartree-resummed renormalized effective potential at finite temperature and critically discuss the role of the effective potential in a non-equilibrium system. We follow the decay and thermalization of a scalar field from an initial cold state with all energy stored in the potential, into a…
Energy-momentum conservation of classical axion-electrodynamics is carefully analyzed in the Hamiltonian formulation of the theory. The term responsible for the energy transfer between the electromagnetic and the axion sectors is identified. As a special application the axion-to-light Primakoff-process in the background of a static magnetic field is worked out and the radiative self-damping of the axion oscillations is characterized quantitatively. The damping time turns out comparable to the age of the Universe in the preferred axion mass range.
Cosmic backreaction as an additional source of the expansion of the universe has been a debate topic since the discovery of cosmic acceleration. The major concern is whether the self interaction of small-scale nonlinear structures would source gravity on very large scales. Gregory Ryskin argued against the additional inclusion of gravitational interaction energy of astronomical objects, whose masses are mostly inferred from gravitational effects and hence should already contain all sources with long-range gravity forces. Ryskin proposed that the backreaction contribution to the energy momentum…
In this paper, we discuss the Higgs vacuum stability around evaporating black holes. We provide a new approach to investigate the false vacuum decay around the black hole and clearly show how vacuum fluctuations of the Higgs induce a gravitational collapse of the vacuum. Furthermore, we point out that the backreaction of the Hawking radiation can not be ignored and the gravitational vacuum decay is exponentially suppressed. However, a large number of the evaporating (or evaporated) primordial black holes threaten the existence of the Universe and we obtain a new upper bound on the evaporating …
We present a calculation of the decay rate of the electroweak vacuum, fully including all gravitational effects and a possible non-minimal Higgs-curvature coupling $ξ$, and using the three-loop Standard Model effective potential. Without a non-minimal coupling, we find that the effect of the gravitational backreaction is small and less significant than previous calculations suggested. The gravitational effects are smallest, and almost completely suppressed, near the conformal value $ξ=1/6$ of the non-minimal coupling. Moving $ξ$ away from this value in either direction universally suppresses t…
We consider -- within QED(2) -- the backreaction to the Schwinger pair creation in a time dependent, spatially homogeneous electric field. Our focus is the depletion of the external field as a quench and the subsequent long-term evolution of the resulting electric field. Our numerical solutions of the self consistent, fully backreacted dynamical equations exhibit a self-sustaining oscillation of both the electric field and the pair number depending on the coupling strength.
The predictions of the semiclassical description of particle creation based on QFT in classical backgrounds may be significantly modified when the source of the classical background is also quantized and backreaction is taken into account. In the cases of a stable charged particle, expanding empty (Milne) universe, and de Sitter universe with a true cosmological constant, the semiclassical particle creation is completely blocked up.
We elaborate on the proposal that the observed acceleration of the Universe is the result of the backreaction of cosmological perturbations, rather than the effect of a negative-pressure dark-energy fluid or a modification of general relativity. Through the effective Friedmann equations describing an inhomogeneous Universe after smoothing, we demonstrate that acceleration in our local Hubble patch is possible even if fluid elements do not individually undergo accelerated expansion. This invalidates the no-go theorem that there can be no acceleration in our local Hubble patch if the Universe on…
We demonstrate that in a vacuum-energy-dominated expansion phase, surprisingly neither the decay of matter nor matter-antimatter annihilation into relativistic particles can ever cause radiation to once again dominate over matter in the future history of the universe.
We construct a black hole whose interior is the false vacuum and whose exterior is the true vacuum of a classical field theory. From the outside the metric is the usual Schwarzschild one, but from the inside the space is de Sitter with a cosmological constant determined by the energy of the false vacuum. The parameters of the field potential may allow for the false vacuum to exist for more than the present age of the universe. A potentially relevant effective field theory within the context of QCD results in a Schwarzschild radius of about 200 km.
A quark-gluon phase transition in the Universe is researched after which vacuum (dark) energy has hardened and become cosmological constant. Before this a vacuum component of the Universe was changing by jumps during phase transitions since vacuum condensates of quantum fields carried a negative contribution in its positive density energy. This quintessence period of the Universe life took place during the first parts of a second when our Universe was losing high symmetry. Using Zel'dovich's formula the modern value of vacuum energy is also calculated. It is shown that a quantum chromodynamica…
We study the dynamics of the quantum scalar field responsible for inflation in different epochs of the evolution of the universe by using a recently introduced nonperturbative formalism from a 5D apparent vacuum.
