Probing the nature of cosmic acceleration

The cosmic acceleration is one of the most significant cosmological discoveries over the last century. The two categories of explanation are exotic component (dark energy) and modified gravity. We constrain the two types of model by a joint analysis with perturbation growth and direct H(z)$H(z)$ data. Though the minimal χ²${\chi }^2$ of the ΛCDM is almost the same as that of DGP, in the sense of consistency we find that the dark energy (ΛCDM) model is more favored through a detailed comparison with the corresponding parameters fitted by expansion data.     

Supersymmetric large extra dimensions and the cosmological constant: an update

This article critically reviews the proposal for addressing the cosmological constant problem within the framework of supersymmetric large extra dimensions (SLED), as recently proposed in hep-th/0304256. After a brief restatement of the cosmological constant problem, a short summary of the proposed mechanism is given. The emphasis is on the perspective of the low-energy effective theory in order to see how it addresses the problem of why low-energy particles like the electron do not contribute too large a vacuum energy. This is followed by a discussion of the main objections, which are grouped into the following five topics: (1) Weinberg’s No-Go Theorem. (2) Are hidden tunings of the theory required, and are these stable under renormalization? (3) Why should the mechanism apply only now and not rule out possible earlier epochs of inflationary dynamics? (4) How big are quantum effects, and which are the most dangerous? and (5) Even if successful, can the mechanism be consistent with cosmological or current observational constraints? It is argued that there are plausible reasons why the mechanism can thread the potential objections, but that a definitive proof that it does depends on addressing well-defined technical points. These points include identifying what fixes the size of the extra dimensions, checking how topological obstructions renormalize and performing specific calculations of quantum corrections. More detailed studies of these issues, which are well within reach of our present understanding of extra-dimensional theories, are currently underway. As such, the jury remains out concerning the proposal, although the prospects for acquittal still seem good. (An abridged version of this article appears in the proceedings of SUSY 2003.)     

Gravitational waves generated during inflation from a 5D vacuum theory of gravity in a de Sitter expansion

In this Letter we study the generation of gravitational waves during inflation from a 5D vacuum theory of gravity. Within this formalism, on an effective 4D de Sitter background, we recover the typical results obtained with 4D inflationary theory in general relativity, for the amplitude of gravitational waves generated during inflation. We also obtain a range of values for the amplitude of tensor to scalar ratio which is in agreement with COBE observations.     

Quintessential inflation from a variable cosmological constant in a 5D vacuum

We explore an effective 4D cosmological model for the universe where the variable cosmological constant governs its evolution and the pressure remains negative along all the expansion. This model is introduced from a 5D vacuum state where the (space-like) extra coordinate is considered as noncompact. The expansion is produced by the inflaton field, which is considered as nonminimally coupled to gravity. We conclude from experimental data that the coupling of the inflaton with gravity should be weak, but variable in different epochs of the evolution of the universe.     

Localization of matter and fermion resonances on double walls

We investigate the possibility of localizing various matter fields on the double walls. For spin 0 scalar field, massless zero mode can be normalized on the double walls. However, for spin 1 vector field, the zero mode is not localized on the double walls. In the paper [C.A.S. Almeida, M.M. Ferreira Jr., A.R. Gomes, R. Casana, arXiv:0901.3543 [hep-th]], the authors investigated fermion localization on a Bloch brane, especially, they found fermion resonances on the Bloch brane for both chiralities and related their appearance to branes with internal structure. Inspired by their work, for spin 1/2 spinor field, we focus our attention mainly on the fermion resonances, and also found fermion resonances for both left-handed fermions and right-handed ones on the double walls, which further supports the arguments presented in the paper [C.A.S. Almeida, M.M. Ferreira Jr., A.R. Gomes, R. Casana, arXiv:0901.3543 [hep-th]].     

Gauge-invariant metric fluctuations from NKK theory of gravity: de Sitter expansion

In this Letter we study gauge-invariant metric fluctuations from a noncompact Kaluza–Klein (NKK) theory of gravity in de Sitter expansion. We recover the well-known result δρ/ρ?2Φ$\delta \rho /\rho ?2\Phi$, obtained from the standard 4D semiclassical approach to inflation. The spectrum for these fluctuations should be dependent of the fifth (spatial-like) coordinate.     

Passing to an effective 4D phantom cosmology from 5D vacuum theory of gravity

Starting from a five-dimensional (5D) vacuum theory of gravity where the extra coordinate is considered as non-compact, we investigate the possibility of inducing four-dimensional (4D) phantom scenarios by applying form-invariance symmetry transformations. In particular we obtain phantom scenarios for two cosmological frameworks. In the first framework we deal with an induced 4D de Sitter expansion and in the second one a 4D induced model where the expansion of the universe is dominated by a decreasing cosmological parameter Λ(t)$\Lambda (t)$ is discussed.     

Localising gravity in composite monopole brane worlds without bulk cosmological constant

We study a 7-dimensional brane world scenario with a Ricci-flat 3-brane residing in the core of a composite monopole defect, i.e., a defect composed of a 't Hooft–Polyakov and a global monopole. Admitting a direct interaction between the two bosonic sectors of the theory, we analyse the structure of the space–time in the limits of small, respectively large direct interaction coupling constant. For large direct interaction, the global monopole disappears from the system and leaves behind a negative cosmological constant in the bulk such that gravity-localising solutions are possible without a priori introduction of a bulk cosmological constant.     

Brane gravitational interactions from 6D supergravity

We investigate the massive graviton contributions to 4D gravity in a 6D brane world scenario, whose bulk field content can include that of 6D chiral gauged supergravity. We consider a general class of solutions having 3-branes, 4D Poincaré symmetry and axisymmetry in the internal space. We show that these contributions, which we compute analytically, can be independent of the brane vacuum energy as a consequence of geometrical and topological properties of the above-mentioned codimension two brane world. These results support the idea that in such models the gravitational interactions may be decoupled from the brane vacuum energy.     

Colliding branes and formation of spacetime singularities

We construct a class of analytic solutions with two free parameters to the five-dimensional Einstein field equations, which represents the collision of two timelike 3-branes. We study the local and global properties of the spacetime, and find that spacelike singularities generically develop after the collision, due to the mutual focus of the two branes. Non-singular spacetime can be constructed only in the case where both of the two branes violate the energy conditions.     

Two 3-branes in Randall–Sundrum setup and current acceleration of the universe

Five-dimensional spacetimes of two orbifold 3-branes are studied, by assuming that the two 3-branes are spatially homogeneous, isotropic, and independent of time  , following the so-called “bulk-based” approach. The most general form of the metric is obtained, and the corresponding field equations are divided into three groups, one is valid on each of the two 3-branes, and the third is valid in the bulk. The Einstein tensor on the 3-branes is expressed in terms of the discontinuities of the first-order derivatives of the metric coefficients. Thus, once the metric is known in the bulk, the distribution of the Einstein tensor on the two 3-branes is uniquely determined. As applications, we consider two different cases, one is in which the bulk is locally AdS₅${\mathit{AdS}}_5$, and the other is where it is vacuum. In some cases, it is shown that the universe is first decelerating and then accelerating. The global structure of the bulk as well as the 3-branes is also studied, and found that in some cases the solutions may represent the collision of two orbifold 3-branes. The applications of the formulas to the studies of the cyclic universe and the cosmological constant problem are also pointed out.     

Domain wall universe in the Einstein–Born–Infeld theory

In this Letter, we discuss the dynamics of a domain wall universe embedded into the charged black hole spacetime of the Einstein–Born–Infeld (EBI) theory. There are four kinds of possible spacetime structures, i.e., those with no horizon, the extremal one, those with two horizons (as the Reissner–Nordström black hole), and those with a single horizon (as the Schwarzshild black hole). We derive the effective cosmological equations on the wall. In contrast to the previous works, we take the contribution of the electrostatic energy on the wall into account. By examining the properties of the effective potential, we find that a bounce can always happen outside the (outer) horizon. For larger masses of the black hole, the height of the barrier between the horizon and bouncing point in the effective potential becomes smaller, leading to longer time scales of bouncing process. These results are compared with those in the previous works.     

Cosmological Kaluza–Klein branes in black brane spacetimes

We discuss the cosmological evolution of a brane in the D(>6)$D(>6)$-dimensional black brane spacetime in the context of the Kaluza–Klein (KK) braneworld scheme, i.e., to consider KK compactification on the brane. The bulk spacetime is composed of two copies of a patch of D  -dimensional black three-brane solution. The near-horizon geometry is given by AdS₅×S(D−5)${\mathit{AdS}}_5\times S^{(D-5)}$ while in the asymptotic infinity the spacetime approaches D-dimensional Minkowski. We consider the brane motion from the near-horizon region toward the spatial infinity, which induces cosmology on the brane. As is expected, in the early times, namely when the brane is located in the near-horizon region, the effective cosmology on the brane coincides with that in the second Randall–Sundrum (RS II) model. Then, the brane cosmology starts to deviate from the RS type one since the dynamics of KK compactified dimensions becomes significant. We find that the brane Universe cannot reach the asymptotic infinity, irrespectively of the components of matter on the brane.     

Bianchi Type III Bulk Viscous Barotropic Fluid Cosmological Models with Variable G and Λ

Bianchi type-Ⅲ bulk viscous barotropic fluid cosmological model with variables G and A is investigated. To obtain the realistic model, we assume the conditions between the metric potentials A, B, C as A/A = B/B = m1/t^N and C/C = m2/t^n, P = p - 3ηH, η =ηop^s, p=γρ, 0 ≤ γ ≤ 1, where p is isotropic pressure,η the coefficient of bulk viscosity, η0 and S the constants, H the Hubble constant, m1 = 2m2 where m1 〉 0, m2 〉 O. The solutions obtained lead to inflationary phase and the results obtained match with the observations. The case n = 1 for S = 1 is also discussed, relating the results with the observations.     

Temperature effect on the power spectrum in inflation

We examine the effect of the thermal vacuum on the power spectrum of inflation by using the thermal field dynamics. We find that the thermal effect influences the CMB anisotropy at large length scale. After removing the divergence by using the holographic cutoff, we observe that the thermal vacuum explains well the observational CMB result at low multipoles. This shows that the temperature dependent factor should be considered in the study of power spectrum in inflation, especially at large length scale.     

Bianchi Type-V Bulk Viscous Barotropic Fluid Cosmological Model with Variable G and Λ

We investigate the Bianchi type-V bulk viscous barotropic fluid cosmological model with variable gravitational constant G and the cosmological constant A, assuming the condition on metric A/A=B/B=C/C=m/tn potential aswhere A, B, and C are functions of time t, while m and n are constants. To obtain the deterministic mo del, we also assume the relations P = p - 3η H, p = 7P, η = ηop^s, where p is the isotropic pressure, η the bulk viscosity,0≤r≤1 H the Hubble constant, ηo and s are constants. Various physical aspects of the model are discussed.The case of n = 1 is also discussed to compare the results with the actual universe.     

Gaussian wave packet states of relic gravitons

In this contribution, we investigate quantum effects of relic gravitons in a Friedmann–Robertson–Walker (FRW) cosmological background. We reduce the problem to that of a generalized time-dependent harmonic oscillator and find the corresponding exact Schrödinger states with the help of linear invariants and of the dynamical invariant method. Afterwards, we construct Gaussian wave packet states and calculate the quantum dispersions as well as the quantum correlations for each mode of the quantized field.     

Exact solutions of embedding the four-dimensional perfect fluid in a five- or higher-dimensional Einstein spacetime and the cosmological interpretations

We investigate an exact solution that describes the embedding of the four-dimensional (4D) perfect fluid in a five-dimensional (5D) Einstein spacetime. The effective metric of the 4D perfect fluid as a hypersurface with induced matter is equivalent to the Robertson–Walker metric of cosmology. This general solution shows interconnections among many 5D solutions, such as the solution in the braneworld scenario and the topological black hole with cosmological constant. If the 5D cosmological constant is positive, the metric periodically depends on the extra dimension. Thus we can compactify the extra dimension on S¹${\mathrm{S}}^1$ and study the phenomenological issues. We also generalize the metric ansatz to the higher-dimensional case, in which the 4D part of the Einstein equations can be reduced to a linear equation.     

Ultrarelativistic sources in nonlinear electrodynamics

The fields of rapidly moving sources are studied within nonlinear electrodynamics by boosting the fields of sources at rest. As a consequence of the ultrarelativistic limit the δ-like electromagnetic shock waves are found. The character of the field within the shock depends on the theory of nonlinear electrodynamics considered. In particular, we obtain the field of an ultrarelativistic charge in the Born–Infeld theory.