Search

Unlike the minimally coupled gravity theory where matter is coupled with gravity in such a manner so that one can differentiate the matter and gravity sector uniquely, the non-minimally coupled theories (NMCT) are distinguished by the intermingling of two. As a consequence of this the calculation of the energy momentum tensor (EMT) in NMCT is beset with an arbitrariness. In this paper we provide an algorithm based on the well known equivalence between Jordan frame and Einstein frame formulations which enables us to construct the EMT for NMCT in a unique way., 13 pages, laTex, no figure

We argue that, in the same way that in a black hole space-time VECROs will form in order to cancel the gravitational effects of a collapsing mass shell and prevent the formation of a singularity, in a contracting universe a gas of VECROs will form to hold up the contraction, prevent a Big Crunch singularity, and lead to a nonsingular cosmological bounce., Comment: 5 pages

We investigate the gravitational lensing effect around a spherically symmetric black hole, whose metric is obtained from the Einstein field equation with electric charge and perfect-fluid dark matter contributing to its energy-momentum tensor. We do the calculation analytically in the weak field limit and we assume that both the charge and the dark matter are much less abundant (only give rise to the next-leading-order contribution) in comparison to the black hole mass. In particular, we derive the light deflection angle and the size of the Einstein ring, where approximations up to the next-leading order are done with extra care, especially for the logarithmic term from perfect-fluid dark matter. We expect our results will be useful in the future to relate the theoretical model of perfect fluid dark matter with observations of celestial bodies immersed in thin dark matter., 14 pages, 3 figures; v2: adding some references

In this paper we study four concrete models, based on no-scale supergravity with SU(2,1)/SU(2)$\times$ U(1) symmetry. We modify either the K\"ahler potential or the superpotential, which are related to the no-scale theory with this symmetry. In this scenario, the induced Gravitational Waves, are calculated to be detectable by the future space-based observations such as LISA, BBO and DECIGO. The models under study are interrelated, as they all yield the Starobinsky effective-like scalar potential in the unmodified case. We evaluate numerically the scalar power spectrum and the stochastic background of the Gravitational Waves, satisfying the observational Planck cosmological constraints for inflation., Comment: 33 pages, 8 figures, Version to appear in European Physical Journal C

We calculate the primordial power spectrum of tensor perturbations, within the emergent universe scenario, incorporating a version of the Continuous Spontaneous Localization (CSL) model as a mechanism capable of: breaking the initial symmetries of the system, generating the perturbations, and also achieving the quantum-to-classical transition of such perturbations. We analyze how the CSL model modifies the characteristics of the B-mode CMB polarization power spectrum, and we explore their differences with current predictions from the standard concordance cosmological model. We have found that, regardless of the CSL mechanism, a confirmed detection of primordial B-modes that fits to a high degree of precision the shape of the spectrum predicted from the concordance $\Lambda$CDM model, would rule out one of the distinguishing features of the emergent universe. Namely, achieving a best fit to the data consistent with the suppression observed in the low multipoles of the angular power spectrum of the temperature anisotropy of the CMB. On the contrary, a confirmed detection that accurately exhibits a suppression of the low multipoles in the B-modes, would be a new feature that could be considered as a favorable evidence for the emergent scenario. In addition, we have been able to establish an upper bound on the collapse parameter of the specific CSL model used., Comment: 13 pages, 3 figures, 1 Appendix. Improved version with additional comments and details. Accepted in EPJC

Recent studies of quantum field theory in FLRW spacetime suggest that the cause of the speeding up of the universe is the running vacuum (RV). Appropriate renormalization of the energy-momentum tensor shows that the vacuum energy density is a smooth function of the Hubble rate and its derivatives: $\rho_{\rm vac}=\rho_{\rm vac}(H, \dot{H},\ddot{H},...)$. This is because in QFT the quantum scaling of $\rho_{\rm vac}$ with the renormalization point turns into cosmic evolution with $H$. As a result, any two nearby points of the cosmic expansion during the standard FLRW epoch are smoothly related through $\delta\rho_{\rm vac}\sim {\cal O}(H^2)$. In our approach, what we call the `cosmological constant' $\Lambda$ is just the nearly sustained value of $8\pi G(H)\rho_{\rm vac}(H)$ around (any) given epoch, where $G(H)$ is the running gravitational coupling. In the present study, after summarizing the main QFT calculations supporting the RV approach, we focus on the calculation of the equation of state (EoS) of the RV for the entire cosmic history within such a QFT framework. In particular, in the very early universe, where higher (even) powers $\rho_{\rm vac}\sim{\cal O}(H^N)$ ($N=4,6,\dots$) triggered inflation during a short period in which $H=$const, the vacuum EoS is very close to $w_{\rm vac}=-1$. This ceases to be true during the FLRW era, where it adopts the EoS of matter during the relativistic ($w_{\rm vac}=1/3$) and non-relativistic ($w_{\rm vac}=0$) epochs. Interestingly enough, we find that in the late universe the EoS becomes mildly dynamical and mimics quintessence, $w_{\rm vac}\gtrsim-1$. It finally asymptotes to $-1$ in the remote future, but in the transit the RV helps alleviating the $H_0$ and $\sigma_8$ tensions., Comment: Slightly changed title. Extended discussion, references added. Accepted for publication in Eur.Phys.J. C

Master equations are commonly employed in cosmology to model the effect of additional degrees of freedom, treated as an "environment", onto a given "system". However, they rely on assumptions that are not necessarily satisfied in cosmology, where the environment may be out of equilibrium and the background is dynamical. In this work, we apply the master-equation program to a model that is exactly solvable, and which consists of two linearly coupled scalar fields evolving on a cosmological background. The light field plays the role of the system and the heavy field is the environment. By comparing the exact solution to the output of the master equation, we can critically assess its performance. We find that the master equation exhibits a set of "spurious" terms that explicitly depend on the initial conditions, and which arise as a consequence of working on a dynamical background. Although they cancel out in the perturbative limit of the theory (i.e. at leading orders in the interaction strength), they spoil resummation. However, when those terms are removed, the master equation performs impressively well to reproduce the power spectra and the amount of the decoherence of the light field, even in the strongly decohered regime. We conclude that master equations are able to perform late-time resummation, even though the system is far from the Markovian limit, provided spurious contributions are suppressed., 25 pages without appendices (48 pages in total), 5 figures, matches published version in EPJC

We revise the dynamical properties of a class of cosmological models where the dark sector interacts through an interacting term that changes sign during evolution. In particular, we obtain the critical points and we investigate the existence and stability conditions for cosmological solutions, describing radiation, matter and dark energy dominated eras. We find that all the studied models admit a stable critical point corresponding to an accelerated phase. We use background data to find the best fit parameters for one of the studied models, resulting an interacting parameter with a definite sign within $1\sigma$ confidence level, consistent with the results of the dynamical system analysis. We also compute the statefinder parameters and plot the $r-q$ and $r-s$ planes, where we observe different trajectories when we vary the interaction parameter for a specific model and when we vary the interacting scenario. We can in this sense distinguish among models, including $\Lambda$CDM., Comment: 20 pages, 16 figures, 9 tables

The Gaussian linear model provides a unique way to obtain the posterior probability distribution as well as the Bayesian evidence analytically. Considering the expansion rate data, the Gaussian linear model can be applied for $\Lambda$CDM, wCDM, and a non-flat $\Lambda$CDM. In this paper, we simulate the expansion data with various precision and obtain the Bayesian evidence, then it has been used to discriminate the models. The data uncertainty is in the range $\sigma\in(0.5,10)\%$ and two different sampling rates have been considered. Our results indicate that it is possible to discriminate $w=-1.02$ (or $w=-0.98$) model from the $\Lambda$CDM $(w=-1)$ with $\sigma=0.5\%$ uncertainty in expansion rate data. Finally, we perform a parameters inference in both the MCMC and Gaussian linear model, using currently available expansion rate data, and compare the results., Comment: Comments are welcome

The renormalization of the vacuum energy in quantum field theory (QFT) is usually plagued with theoretical conundrums related not only with the renormalization procedure itself, but also with the fact that the final result leads usually to very large (finite) contributions incompatible with the measured value of $\Lambda$ in cosmology. Herein, we compute the zero-point energy (ZPE) for a nonminimally coupled (massive) scalar field in FLRW spacetime using the off-shell adiabatic renormalization technique employed in previous work. The general off-shell result yields a smooth function $\rho_{\rm vac}(H)$ made out of powers of the Hubble rate and/or of its time derivatives involving different (even) adiabatic orders $\sim H^N$ ($N=0,2,4,6,...)$, i.e. it leads, remarkably enough, to the running vacuum model (RVM) structure. We have verified the same result from the effective action formalism and used it to find the $\beta$-function of the running quantum vacuum. No undesired contributions $\sim m^4$ from particle masses appear and hence no fine-tuning of the parameters is needed in $\rho_{\rm vac}(H)$. Furthermore, we find that the higher power $\sim H^6$ could naturally drive RVM-inflation in the early universe. Our calculation also elucidates in detail the equation of state of the quantum vacuum: it proves to be not exactly $-1$ and is moderately dynamical. The form of $\rho_{\rm vac}(H)$ at low energies is also characteristic of the RVM and consists of an additive term (the so-called `cosmological constant') together with a small dynamical component $\sim \nu H^2$ ($|\nu|\ll1$). Finally, we predict a slow ($\sim\ln H$) running of Newton's gravitational coupling $G(H)$. The physical outcome of our semiclassical QFT calculation is revealing: today's cosmic vacuum and the gravitational strength should be both mildly dynamical., Comment: Typos corrected, references added

Large-scale bulk peculiar motions introduce a characteristic length scale, inside which the local kinematics are dominated by peculiar-velocity perturbations rather than by the background Hubble expansion. Regions smaller than the aforementioned critical length, which typically varies between few hundred and several hundred Mpc, can be heavily "contaminated" by the observers' relative motion. For example, at the critical length -- hereafter referred to as the "transition scale", the sign of the locally measured deceleration parameter can change from positive to negative, while the surrounding universe is still decelerating globally. Overall, distant observers can assign very different values to their local deceleration parameters, entirely because of their relative motion. In practice, this suggests that information selected from regions inside and close to the transition scale hold only locally and they should not be readily extrapolated to the global universe. We show that this principle applies to essentially all Friedmann backgrounds, irrespective of their equation of state and spatial curvature. Put another way, the transition scale and the related effects are generic to linear peculiar-velocity perturbations. This study generalises previous work applied, primarily for reasons of mathematical simplicity, to a perturbed Einstein-de Sitter universe., Minor revision, references added. To appear in EPJC

We formulate power-law holographic dark energy, which is a modified holographic dark energy model based on the extended entropy relation arising from the consideration of state mixing between the ground and the excited ones in the calculation of the entanglement entropy. We construct two cases of the scenario, imposing the usual future event horizon choice, as well as the Hubble one. Thus, the former model is a one-parameter extension of standard holographic dark energy, recovering it in the limit where power-law extended entropy recovers Bekenstein-Hawking one, while the latter belongs to the class of running vacuum models, a feature that may reveal the connection between holography and the renormalization group running. For both models we extract the differential equation that determines the evolution of the dark-energy density parameter and we provide the expression for the corresponding equation-of-state parameter. We find that the scenario can describe the sequence of epochs in the Universe evolution, namely the domination of matter followed by the domination of dark energy. Moreover, the dark-energy equation of state presents a rich behavior, lying in the quintessence regime or passing into the phantom one too, depending on the values of the two model parameters, a behavior that is richer than the one of standard holographic dark energy., Comment: 6 pages, 3 figures

We explore the shifted $f(R) (\propto R^{1+\delta})$ model with ${\delta}$ as a distinguishing physical parameter for the study of constraints at local scales. The corresponding dynamics confronted with different geodesics (null and non-null) along with its conformal analogue is investigated. For null geodesics, we discuss the light deflection angle, whereas for non-null geodesics under the weak field limit, we investigate the perihelion advance of the Mercury orbit in $f(R)$ Schwarzschild background, respectively. The extent of an additional force, appearing for non-null geodesics, depends on $\delta$. Such phenomenological investigations allow us to strictly constrain $\delta$ to be approximately $\mathcal{O}(10^{-6})$ with a difference of unity in orders at galactic and planetary scales and seems to provide a unique $f(R)$ at local scales. Further, at late cosmic time, we analyse the constraint on $\delta$ via the bare scalar self-interaction Einstein frame potential to provide a null test of dark energy. We constrain the deviation parameter, $\mid\delta\mid$ to $(\approx 0.6)$ which is in a close agreement with the results obtained through various observations in the Jordan frame by several authors. Our results suggest that the present form of model is suitable for the alternate explanation of dark matter-like effects at local scales, whereas at large scales the deviations grow higher and must be addressed in terms of the accelerated background., Comment: 14 pages, 8 figures

We present novel realizations of E-model inflation within Supergravity which are largely associated with the existence of a pole of order one in the kinetic term of the (gauge-singlet) inflaton superfield. This pole arises due to the selected logarithmic Kahler potentials K1 and ~K1, which parameterize the same hyperbolic manifold with scalar curvature R=-2/N, where N>0 is the coefficient of a logarithmic term. The associated superpotential W exhibits the same R charge with the inflaton-accompanying superfield and includes all the allowed renormalizable terms. For K=K1, inflation can be attained for N=2 at the cost of some tuning regarding the coefficients of the W terms and predicts a tensor-to-scalar ratio r at the level of 0.001. The tuning can be totally eluded for K=~K1, which allows for quadratic- and quartic-like models with N values increasing with r and spectral index ns close or even equal to its present central observational value., To appear in EPJC

We put forward a novel class of exotic celestial objects that can be produced through phase transitions occurred in the primordial Universe. These objects appear as bubbles of stellar sizes and can be dominated by primordial black holes (PBHs). We report that, due to the processes of Hawking radiation and binary evolution of PBHs inside these stellar bubbles, both electromagnetic and gravitational radiations can be emitted that are featured on the gamma-ray spectra and stochastic gravitational waves (GWs). Our results reveal that, depending on the mass distribution, the exotic stellar bubbles consisting of PBHs provide not only a decent fit for the ultrahigh-energy gamma-ray spectrum reported by the recent LHAASO experiment, but also predict GW signals that are expected to be tested by the forthcoming GW surveys., 12 pages, 9 figures

The Cohen-Kaplan-Nelson (CKN) bound formulates the condition that black hole is not produced by the low energy effective field theory dynamics. In de Sitter space it also constrains the maximal size of the matter distribution to be smaller than the cosmological horizon determined by black hole. On the other hand, the swampland distance conjecture (SDC) predicts that de Sitter space becomes unstable by the descent of the low energy degrees of freedom from UV. This results in the rapid increase in the energy inside the cosmological horizon, the distribution of which can be constrained by the CKN bound. We study the CKN bound in de Sitter space in detail and point out that when compared with the slow-roll in the inflation, the bound on the slow-roll parameter which forbids the eternal inflation is obtained., 7 pages, 1 figure, Version published in Eur. Phys. J. C

We propose to introduce non-minimal couplings of Affleck-Dine (AD) field to gravity by adding the coupling of AD field to the Ricci scalar curvature. As the Jordan frame supergravity always predict $|\Phi|^2 {\cal R}/6$ type coupling for scalars with canonical kinetic terms, we propose a way to realize the required $c_0|\Phi|^2 {\cal R}$-type couplings with generic $c_0$ for canonical complex scalar fields after SUSY breaking. The impacts of such non-minimal gravitational couplings for AD field is shown, especially on the Q-balls formation and the associated gravitational wave (GW) productions. New form of scalar potential for AD field in the Einstein frame is obtained. By numerical simulations, we find that, with non-minimal gravitational coupling to AD field, Q-balls can successfully form even with the choice of non-negative $K$ parameter for $\xi>0$. The associated GW productions as well as their dependences on the $\xi$ parameter are also discussed., Comment: 15 pages, 4 figures. Published version in EPJC

Primordial black holes (PBHs) are convenient candidates to explain the elusive dark matter (DM). However, years of constraints from various astronomical observations have constrained their abundance over a wide range of masses, leaving only a narrow window open at $10^{17}\,{\rm g} \lesssim M \lesssim 10^{22}\,$g for all DM in the form of PBHs. We reexamine this disputed window with a critical eye, interrogating the general hypotheses underlying the direct photon constraints. We review 4 levels of assumptions: i) instrument characteristics, ii) prediction of the (extra)galactic photon flux, iii) statistical method of signal-to-data comparison and iv) computation of the Hawking radiation rate. Thanks to Isatis, a new tool designed for the public Hawking radiation code BlackHawk, we first revisit the existing and prospective constraints on the PBH abundance and investigate the impact of assumptions i)-iv). We show that the constraints can vary by several orders of magnitude, advocating the necessity of a reduction of the theoretical sources of uncertainties. Second, we consider an "ideal" instrument and we demonstrate that the PBH DM scenario can only be constrained by the direct photon Hawking radiation phenomenon below $M_{\rm max} \sim 10^{20}\,$g. The upper part of the mass window should therefore be closed by other means., Comment: 19 pages, 7 figures, 5 tables, accepted for publication in EPJC

A cosmological model in an Einstein-Cartan framework endowed with torsion is studied. For a torsion function assumed to be proportional to Hubble expansion function, namely $\phi=-\alpha H$, the contribution of torsion function as a dark matter component is studied in two different approaches. In the first one, the total matter energy density is altered by torsion coupling $\alpha$, giving rise to an effective dark matter and cosmological constant terms that reproduce quite well the flat cosmic concordance model. In the second approach, starting with just standard baryonic matter plus a cosmological constant term, it is obtained that the coupling of torsion with baryons and cosmological constant term naturally gives rise to a dark matter contribution, together a modified cosmological term. In this model the dark matter sector can be interpreted as an effective coupling of the torsion function with the ordinary baryonic matter and cosmological constant. Finally, it is shown that both models are totally compatible with recent cosmological data from Supernovae and Hubble parameter measurements., Comment: 17 pages, 4 figures

While spacetime in the vicinity outside astrophysical black holes is believed to be well understood, the event horizon and the interior remain elusive. Here, we discover a degenerate infinite spectrum of novel general relativity solutions with the same mass-energy and entropy that describe a dark energy universe inside an astrophysical black hole. This regular cosmological black hole is stabilized by a finite tangential pressure applied on the dual cosmological-black hole event horizon, localized up to a quantum indeterminacy. We recover the Bekenstein-Hawking entropy formula from the classical fluid entropy, calculated at a Tolman temperature equal to the cosmological horizon temperature. We further calculate its gravitational quasi-normal modes. We find that cosmological black holes are detectable by gravitational-wave experiments operating within the $\mu{\rm Hz}-{\rm Hz}$ range, like LISA space-interferometer., Comment: Citing Virgo properly in version 2

We reconsider the dynamical systems approach to analyze inflationary universe in the Jordan frame models of scalar field nonminimally coupled to curvature. The adopted set of variables allows us to clearly distinguish between different asymptotic states in the phase space, including the kinetic and inflationary regimes. Inflation is realized as a heteroclinic trajectory originating either at infinity from a nonhyperbolic asymptotic de Sitter point or from a regular saddle de Sitter point. We also present a comprehensive picture of possible initial conditions leading to sufficient inflationary expansion and show their extent on the phase diagrams. In addition we comment on the slow roll conditions applicable in the Jordan frame and show how they approximate the leading inflationary "attractor solution". As particular examples we portrait quadratic and quartic potential models and note that increasing the nonminimal coupling diminishes the range of good initial conditions in the quadratic case, but enlarges is in the quartic case., Comment: 19 pages, 20 plots; v2: minor typos corrected, references added, discussion on the slow roll approximation expanded, version for publication in EPJC

If the refractive index of the relic gravitons increases during a conventional stage of inflationary evolution the spectral energy density is blue at intermediate frequencies above the fHz and then flattens out after a knee that is typically smaller than the mHz. We investigate here the conditions leading to a sufficiently large spectral energy density in the nHz range where some peculiar signatures observed with the pulsar timing arrays have been recently attributed to cosmic gravitons. If these potential evidences are combined with the most recent bounds provided by wide-band interferometers in the audio range (i.e. between few Hz and the kHz) the allowed regions of the parameter space are compatible with both determinations and also with all the other constraints associated with the background of relic gravitons produced during inflation. The present analysis suggests that the pulsar timing arrays are sensitive to the evolution of the refractive index during the early stages of the inflationary evolution. This physical interpretation of the preliminary empirical evidence is distinguishable from other perspectives since the high-frequency normalization, the blue spectral index and the tensor to scalar ratio cannot be independently assigned but are all related to the frequency of the knee that is ultimately determined by the competition between the rate of evolution of the refractive index and the slow-roll corrections., 11 pages, 3 figures

In this paper, we extend a recent proposed model of two scalar and two vector fields to a hyperbolic inflation scenario, in which the field space of two scalar fields is a hyperbolic space instead of a flat space. In this model, one of the scalar fields is assumed to be a radial field, while the other is set as an angular field. Furthermore, both scalar fields will be coupled to two different vector fields, respectively. As a result, we are able to obtain a set of exact Bianchi type I solutions to this model. Stability analysis is also performed to show that this set of anisotropic solutions is indeed stable and attractive during the inflationary phase. This result indicates that the cosmic no-hair conjecture is extensively violated in this anisotropic hyperbolic inflation model., Comment: 15 pages, 2 figures. Matches the published version. All calculations are not modified. Comments are welcome

We investigate the generation of Primordial Black Holes (PBHs) with the aid of gravitationally increased friction mechanism originated from the NonMinimal field Derivative Coupling (NMDC) to gravity framework, with the quartic potential. Applying the coupling parameter as a two-parted function of inflaton field and fine-tuning of five parameter assortments we can acquire ultra slow-roll phase to slow down the inflaton field due to high friction. This enables us to achieve enough enhancement in the amplitude of curvature perturbations power spectra to generate PBHs with different masses. The reheating stage is considered to obtain criteria for PBHs generation during radiation dominated era. We demonstrate that three cases of asteroid mass PBHs ($10^{-12}M_{\odot}$, $10^{-13}M_{\odot}$, and $10^{-15}M_{\odot})$ can be very interesting candidates for comprising $100\%$ , $98.3\%$ and $99.1\%$ of the total Dark Matter (DM) content of the universe. Moreover, we analyse the production of induced Gravitational Waves (GWs), and illustrate that their spectra of current density parameter $(\Omega_{\rm GW_0})$ for all parameter Cases foretold by our model have climaxes which cut the sensitivity curves of GWs detectors, ergo the veracity of our outcomes can be tested in light of these detectors. At last, our numerical results exhibit that the spectra of $\Omega_{\rm GW_0}$ behave as a power-law function with respect to frequency, $\Omega_{\rm GW_0} (f) \sim (f/f_c)^{n} $, in the vicinity of climaxes. Also, in the infrared regime $f\ll f_{c}$, the power index satisfies the relation $n=3-2/\ln(f_c/f)$., Comment: 32 pages, 6 figures

In this paper, we propose an extension of the Ricci-inverse gravity, which has been proposed recently as a very novel type of fourth-order gravity, by introducing a second order term of the so-called anticurvature scalar as a correction. The main purpose of this paper is that we would like to see whether the extended Ricci-inverse gravity model admits the homogeneous and isotropic Friedmann-Lemaitre-Robertson-Walker metric as its stable inflationary solution. However, a no-go theorem for inflation in this extended Ricci-inverse gravity is shown to appear through a stability analysis based on the dynamical system method. As a result, this no-go theorem implies that it is impossible to have such stable inflation in this extended Ricci-inverse gravity model., Comment: 14 pages, 3 figures. Updated version with additional discussions on the Minkowskian limit. All calculations are not modified. Matches the published version. Comments are welcome

We investigate the validity of the generalized second law of thermodynamics, applying Barrow entropy for the horizon entropy. The former arises from the fact that the black-hole surface may be deformed due to quantum-gravitational effects, quantified by a new exponent $\Delta$. We calculate the entropy time-variation in a universe filled with the matter and dark energy fluids, as well as the corresponding quantity for the apparent horizon. We show that although in the case $\Delta=0$, which corresponds to usual entropy, the sum of the entropy enclosed by the apparent horizon plus the entropy of the horizon itself is always a non-decreasing function of time and thus the generalized second law of thermodynamics is valid, in the case of Barrow entropy this is not true anymore, and the generalized second law of thermodynamics may be violated, depending on the universe evolution. Hence, in order not to have violation, the deformation from standard Bekenstein-Hawking expression should be small as expected., Comment: 6 pages, 2 figures, version published in Eur.Phys.J.C

Non-canonical scalar fields with the Lagrangian ${\cal L} = X^\alpha - V(\phi)$, possess the attractive property that the speed of sound, $c_s^{2} = (2\,\alpha - 1)^{-1}$, can be exceedingly small for large values of $\alpha$. This allows a non-canonical field to cluster and behave like warm/cold dark matter on small scales. We demonstrate that simple potentials including $V = V_0\coth^2{\phi}$ and a Starobinsky-type potential can unify dark matter and dark energy. Cascading dark energy, in which the potential cascades to lower values in a series of discrete steps, can also work as a unified model. In all of these models the kinetic term $X^\alpha$ plays the role of dark matter, while the potential term $V(\phi)$ plays the role of dark energy., Comment: 19 pages, 9 figures. Comprehensively revised and expanded. New section on Cascading dark energy

The production of the hypermagnetic gyrotropy is investigated under the assumption that the gauge coupling smoothly evolves during a quasi-de Sitter phase and then flattens out in the radiation epoch by always remaining perturbative. In the plane defined by the strength of the anomalous interactions and by the rate of evolution of the gauge coupling the actual weight of the pseudoscalar interactions turns out to be always rather modest if major deviations from the homogeneity are to be avoided during the inflationary phase. Even if the gauge power spectra are related by duality only in the absence of anomalous contributions, an approximate duality symmetry constrains the late-time form of the hypermagnetic power spectra. Since the hypermagnetic gyrotropy associated with the modes reentering prior to the phase transition must be released into fermions later on, the portions of the parameter space where the obtained baryon asymmetry is close to the observed value are the most relevant for the present ends. For the same range of parameters the magnetic power spectra associated with the modes reentering after symmetry breaking may even be of the order of a few hundredths of a nG over typical length scales comparable with the Mpc prior to the collapse of the protogalaxy., Comment: 40 pages, 8 figures

We present a comparative study of inflation in two theories of quadratic gravity with {\it gauged} scale symmetry: 1) the original Weyl quadratic gravity and 2) the theory defined by a similar action but in the Palatini approach obtained by replacing the Weyl connection by its Palatini counterpart. These theories have different vectorial non-metricity induced by the gauge field ($w_\mu$) of this symmetry. Both theories have a novel spontaneous breaking of gauged scale symmetry, in the absence of matter, where the necessary scalar field is not added ad-hoc to this purpose but is of geometric origin and part of the quadratic action. The Einstein-Proca action (of $w_\mu$), Planck scale and metricity emerge in the broken phase after $w_\mu$ acquires mass (Stueckelberg mechanism), then decouples. In the presence of matter ($\phi_1$), non-minimally coupled, the scalar potential is similar in both theories up to couplings and field rescaling. For small field values the potential is Higgs-like while for large fields inflation is possible. Due to their $R^2$ term, both theories have a small tensor-to-scalar ratio ($r\sim 10^{-3}$), larger in Palatini case. For a fixed spectral index $n_s$, reducing the non-minimal coupling ($\xi_1$) increases $r$ which in Weyl theory is bounded from above by that of Starobinsky inflation. For a small enough $\xi_1\leq 10^{-3}$, unlike the Palatini version, Weyl theory gives a dependence $r(n_s)$ similar to that in Starobinsky inflation, while also protecting $r$ against higher dimensional operators corrections., Comment: 25 pages, 7 figures, LaTeX; v3: Sections 1 and 3 expanded; improved presentation

High dissipative regime of warm pseudoscalar inflation model \cite{Kamali:2019ppi} with an approximately constant value of dissipation parameter $Q$ is studied. { Intermediate solution of the scale-factor related to the accelerated expansion of the Universe which is rolled out by observational data in the context of standard (cold) model of inflation is used.} There is a region of free parameters phase-space of the model which is interestingly compatible with recent observational data. It is discussed that the model is also compatible with the swampland criteria in a broad range of parameters phase-space and TCC in a limited area of parameters., Published by EPJC

To investigate whether $f(R)$ gravity can relieve current $H_0$ and $\sigma_8$ tensions, we constrain the Hu-Sawicki $f(R)$ gravity with Planck-2018 cosmic microwave background and redshift space distortions observations. We find that this model fails to relieve both $H_0$ and $\sigma_8$ tensions, and that its two typical parameters $\log_{10}f_{R0}$ and $n$ are insensitive to other cosmological parameters. Combining the cosmic microwave background, baryon acoustic oscillations, Type Ia supernovae, cosmic chronometers with redshift space distortions observations, we give our best constraint $\log_{10}f_{R0}, Comment: 9 pages, 7 figures. Accepted in EPJC

We study a recent proposed Ricci-inverse gravity, which is a very novel type of fourth-order gravity. In particular, we are able to figure out both isotropically and anisotropically inflating universes to this model. More interestingly, these solutions are free from a singularity problem. However, stability analysis based on the dynamical system method shows that both isotropic and anisotropic inflation of this model turn out to be unstable against field perturbations. This result implies a no-go theorem for both isotropic and anisotropic inflation in the Ricci-inverse gravity., Comment: 15 pages, 2 figures. This is a minor revision, in which the title and abstract are modified in order to express more clearly the main result of this paper. In addition, discussions on some important results investigated by other people are added. Some relevant references are also added. All calculations and conclusions are not changed. Accepted for publication in EPJC. Comments are welcome

We construct the general analytical solution for the $\mathcal{N}$-field product-exponential potential in an expanding FLRW background. We demonstrate the relevance of this analytical solution in more general contexts for the derivation of estimates for the transitional time between an arbitrary initial state and the slow-roll solutions. In certain cases, these estimates can also be used to demonstrate the non-linear convergence towards the slow-roll solutions. In addition, we extend the solution to include stiff matter as well., v4: improved discussion, solution generalized to N fields, dynamical systems section left out to match published version; v2: 20+1 pages, 5 figures, corrected typos; v3: small changes

Constraints on a dark energy dominated Universe are obtained from an interplay between Bayesian Machine Learning and string Swampland criteria. The approach here differs from previous studies, since in the generative process Swampland criteria are used and, only later, the results of the fit are validated, by using observational data-sets. A generative process based Bayesian Learning approach is applied to two models and the results are validated by means of available $H(z)$ data. For the first model, a parametrization of the Hubble constant is considered and, for the second, a parametrization of the deceleration parameter. This study is motivated by a recent work, where constraints on string Swampland criteria have been obtained from a Gaussian Process and $H(z)$ data. However, the results obtained here are fully independent of the observational data and allow to estimate how the high-redshift behavior of the Universe will affect the low-redshift one. Moreover, both parameterizations in the generative process, for the Hubble and for the deceleration parameters, are independent of the dark energy model. The outcome, both data- and dark energy model-independent, may highlight, in the future, the borders of the Swampland for the low-redshift Universe and help to develop new string-theory motivated dark-energy models. The string Swampland criteria considered might be in tension with recent observations indicating that phantom dark energy cannot be in the Swampland. Finally, a spontaneous sign switch in the dark energy equation of state parameter is observed when the field traverses are in the $z\in[0,5]$ redshift range, a remarkable phenomenon requiring further analysis., Comment: 12 pages, 4 figures, 2 tables

The self coupling $\lambda$ of the Higgs boson in the Standard Model may show critical behavior, i.e. the Higgs potential may have a point at an energy scale $\sim 10^{17-18}$ GeV where both the first and second derivatives (almost) vanish. In this case the Higgs boson can serve as inflaton even if its nonminimal coupling to the curvature scalar is only ${\cal O}(10)$, thereby alleviating concerns about the perturbative unitarity of the theory. We find that just before the Higgs as inflaton enters the flat region of the potential the usual slow--roll conditions are violated. This leads to "overshooting" behavior, which in turn strongly enhances scalar curvature perturbations because of the excitation of entropic (non--adiabatic) perturbations. For appropriate choice of the free parameters these large perturbations occur at length scales relevant for the formation of primordial black holes. Even if these perturbations are not quite large enough to trigger copious black hole formation, they source second order tensor perturbations, i.e. primordial gravitational waves; the corresponding energy density can be detected by the proposed space-based gravitational wave detectors DECIGO and BBO., Comment: v3: updated Fig.11 by considering the kinematic effect of dark energy on the induced GW signatures; main conclusions remain unchanged; version published in EPJC

We present a detailed investigation of the Rastall gravity extension of the standard $\Lambda$CDM model. We review the model for two simultaneous modifications of different nature in the Friedmann equation due to the Rastall gravity: the new contributions of the material (actual) sources (considered as effective source) and the altered evolution of the material sources. We discuss the role/behavior of these modifications with regard to some low redshift tensions, including the so-called $H_0$ tension, prevailing within the standard $\Lambda$CDM. We constrain the model at the level of linear perturbations, and obtain the first constraints through a robust and accurate analysis using the latest full Planck CMB data, with and without including BAO data. We find that the Rastall parameter $\epsilon$ (null for general relativity) is consistent with zero at 68\% CL (with a tendency towards positive values, $-0.0001 < \epsilon < 0.0007$ (CMB+BAO) at 68\% CL), which in turn implies no significant statistical evidence for deviation from general relativity, and also a precision of $\mathcal{O}(10^{-4})$ for the coefficient $-1/2$ of the term $g_{\mu\nu}R$ in the Einstein field equations of general relativity (guaranteeing the local energy-momentum conservation). We explore the consequences led by the Rastall gravity on the cosmological parameters in the light of the observational analyses. It turns out that the effective source dynamically screens the usual vacuum energy at high redshifts, but this mechanism barely works due to the opposition by the altered evolution of CDM. Consequently, two simultaneous modifications of different nature in the Friedmann equation act against each other, and do not help to considerably relax the so-called low redshift tensions. Our results may offer a guide for the research community that studies the Rastall gravity in various aspects of gravitation and cosmology., Comment: 19 pages, 10 figures, 2 tables; matches the version published in EPJC

We generalise Einstein's formulation of the traceless Einstein equations to $f(R)$ gravity theories. In the case of the vacuum traceless Einstein equations, we show that a non-constant Weyl tensor leads via a conformal transformation to a dimensionally homogeneous (`no-scale') theory in the conformal frame with a scalar field source that has an exponential potential. We then formulate the traceless version of $f(R)$ gravity, and we find that a conformal transformation leads to a no-scale theory conformally equivalent to general relativity and a scalar field $\phi $ with a potential given by the scale-invariant form: $V(\phi )=\frac{D-2}{4D}Re^{-\phi }$, where $\phi =[2/(D-2)]\ln f^{\prime }(R)$. In this theory, the cosmological constant is a mere integration constant, statistically distributed in a multiverse of independent causal domains, the vacuum energy is another unrelated arbitrary constant, and the same is true of the height of the inflationary plateau present in a huge variety of potentials. Unlike in the conformal equivalent of full general relativity, flat potentials are found to be possible in all spacetime dimensions for polynomial lagrangians of all orders. Hence, we are led to a novel interpretation of the cosmological constant vacuum energy problem and have accelerated inflationary expansion in the very early universe with a very small cosmological constant at late times for a wide range of no-scale theories. Fine-tunings required in traceless general relativity or standard non-traceless $f(R)$ theories of gravity are avoided. We show that the predictions of the scale-invariant conformal potential are completely consistent with microwave background observational data concerning the primordial tilt and the tensor-to-scalar ratio., Comment: v2: 26 pages, new extended version, additional conclusions

In string theory the closed-string massless NS-NS sector forms a multiplet of $\mathbf{O}(D,D)$ symmetry. This suggests a specific modification to General Relativity in which the entire NS-NS sector is promoted to stringy graviton fields. Imposing off-shell $\mathbf{O}(D,D)$ symmetry fixes the correct couplings to other matter fields and the Einstein field equations are enriched to comprise $D^{2}+1$ components, dubbed recently as the Einstein Double Field Equations. Here we explore the cosmological implications of this framework. We derive the most general homogeneous and isotropic ansatzes for both stringy graviton fields and the $\mathbf{O}(D,D)$-covariant energy-momentum tensor. Crucially, the former admits space-filling magnetic $H$-flux. Substituting them into the Einstein Double Field Equations, we obtain the $\mathbf{O}(D,D)$ completion of the Friedmann equations along with a generalized continuity equation. We discuss how solutions in this framework may be characterized by two equation-of-state parameters, $w$ and $\lambda$, where the latter characterizes the relative intensities of scalar and tensor forces. When $\lambda+3w=1$, the dilaton remains constant throughout the cosmological evolution, and one recovers the standard Friedmann equations for generic matter content (i.e. for any $w$). We further point out that, in contrast to General Relativity, neither an $\mathbf{O}(D,D)$-symmetric cosmological constant nor a scalar field with positive energy density gives rise to a de Sitter solution., Comment: v2: 31 + 13 pages; 1 figure. References added; abstract amended; discussion amended and clarified throughout. Results unchanged. To be published in EPJC. v1: 28 + 12 pages (main body + title, appendix, and references); 1 figure

In the recent time, inflationary cosmology is facing an existential crisis due to the proposed Swampland criterion which aims to evade any (meta-)stable de Sitter construction within the String landscape. It is been realised that a single field slow roll inflation is inconsistent with the Swampland criterion unless the inflationary model in realised in some non standard scenario such as Warm inflation or the Braneworld scenario. In \cite{Dimopoulos}, Dimopoulos and Owen introduced a new class of model of inflation dubbed as the power law plateau inflation in the standard cold inflationary scenario. But to realise this model in the standard scenario consistent with observation, they had to introduce a phase of thermal inflation. In this paper we have analysed this model in the braneworld scenario to show that for some choice of the parameters defining the model class, one can have an observationally consistent power law plateau without any phase of thermal inflation. We have also shown that, for the correct choice of model parameters, one can easily satisfy the Swampland criterion. Besides, for a particular choice of the potential one can also satisfy the recently proposed Trans-Planckian Censorship Conjecture., Comment: 14 pages,Matches published version, Section on TCC added

We consider the linear kinematics of large-scale peculiar motions in a perturbed Friedmann universe. In so doing, we take the viewpoint of the "real" observers that move along with the peculiar flow, relative to the smooth Hubble expansion. Using relativistic cosmological perturbation theory, we study the linear evolution of the peculiar velocity field, as well as the expansion/contraction, the shear and the rotation of the bulk motion. Our solutions show growth rates considerably stronger than those of the earlier treatments, which were mostly Newtonian. On scales near and beyond the Hubble radius, namely at the long-wavelength limit, peculiar velocities are found to grow as $a^2$, in terms of the scale factor, instead of the Newtonian $a^{1/2}$-law. We attribute this to the fact that, in general relativity, the energy flux, triggered here by the peculiar motion of the matter, also contributes to the local gravitational field. In a sense, the bulk flow gravitates, an effect that has been bypassed in related relativistic studies. These stronger growth-rates imply faster peculiar velocities at horizon crossing and higher residual values for the peculiar-velocity field. Alternatively, one could say that our study favours bulk peculiar flows larger and faster than anticipated., Comment: Typos corrected. Matches published version

We study cosmological models involving a single real scalar field that has an equation of state parameter which evolves with cosmic time. We highlight some common parametrizations for the equation of state as a function of redshift in the context of twinlike theories. The procedure is used to introduce different models that have the same acceleration parameter, with the very same energy densities and pressure in flat spacetime., 7 pages, 4 figures; Accepted for publication in the EPJC

In this work, we study two scenarios of the Universe filled by a perfect fluid following the traditional dark energy and a viscous fluid as dark matter. In this sense, we explore the simplest case for the viscosity in the Eckart formalism, a constant, and then, a polynomial function of the redshift. We constrain the phase-space of the model parameters by performing a Bayesian analysis based on Markov Chain Monte Carlo method and using the latest data of the Hubble parameter (OHD), Type Ia Supernovae (SNIa) and Strong Lensing Systems. The first two samples cover the region $0.01, Comment: Accepted for publication in EPJC

The production of GWs during preheating in the Starobinsky model with a nonminimally coupled auxiliary scalar field is studied through the lattice simulation in this paper. We find that the GW spectrum $\Omega_{\rm gw}$ grows fast with the increase of the absolute value of coupling parameter $\xi$. This is because the resonant bands become broad with the increase of $|\xi|$. When $\xi0$. $\Omega_{\rm gw}$ reaches the maximum at $\xi=-20$ ($\xi=42$ for the case $\xi>0$) and then decreases with slight oscillation. Furthermore we find that the GWs produced in the era of preheating satisfy the limits from the Planck and next-generation CMB experiments., Comment: 15 pages, 5 figures

The role of an exponential function of the scalar curvature in the modified gravity is analyzed. Two models are proposed. A toy model that complies with local and cosmological constraints and gives appropriate qualitative description of the cosmic evolution. This model contains a saddle matter-dominant critical point that can evolve towards a late time de Sitter attractor. Initial conditions have been proposed, showing that this toy model has an acceptable matter era and gives an approximate qualitative behavior of cosmic evolution. A second viable model, behaves very close to $\Lambda$CDM at early times and can satisfy local and cosmological constraints. It behaves as $R-2\Lambda$ at $R\rightarrow \infty$ and tends to zero at $R\rightarrow 0$, containing flat spacetime solution. The model gives viable cosmological trajectories that, as the first model, connect the matter dominated point with a late time de Sitter attractor. The cosmic evolution of the main density parameters in this model is consistent with current observations with an equation of state very close to $-1$., Comment: 30 pages, 8 figures, version accepted in EPJC

We consider an $f(Q,T)$ type gravity model in which the scalar non-metricity $Q_{\alpha \mu \nu}$ of the space-time is expressed in its standard Weyl form, and it is fully determined by a vector field $w_{\mu}$. The field equations of the theory are obtained under the assumption of the vanishing of the total scalar curvature, a condition which is added into the gravitational action via a Lagrange multiplier. The gravitational field equations are obtained from a variational principle, and they explicitly depend on the scalar nonmetricity and on the Lagrange multiplier. The covariant divergence of the matter energy-momentum tensor is also determined, and it follows that the nonmetricity-matter coupling leads to the nonconservation of the energy and momentum. The energy and momentum balance equations are explicitly calculated, and the expressions of the energy source term and of the extra force are found. We investigate the cosmological implications of the theory, and we obtain the cosmological evolution equations for a flat, homogeneous and isotropic geometry, which generalize the Friedmann equations of standard general relativity. We consider several cosmological models by imposing some simple functional forms of the function $f(Q,T)$, and we compare the predictions of the theory with the standard $\Lambda$CDM model., Comment: 22 pages, 14 figures, accepted for publication in Eur. Phys. Journal C. arXiv admin note: text overlap with arXiv:1908.04760

In the context of Einstein-aether scalar field cosmology we solve the field equations and determine exact and analytic solutions. In particular, we consider a model proposed by Kanno and Soda where the aether and the scalar fields interact through the aether coefficient parameters, which are promoted to be functions of the scalar field. For this model, we write the field equations by using the minisuperspace approach and we determine the scalar field potentials which leads to Liouville--integrable systems. We solve the field equations for five families of scalar field potentials and, whether it is feasible, we write down the analytic solutions by using closed-form functions., 16 pages, 2 figures, to appear in EPJC

General relativity (GR) extensions based on renormalization group (RG) flows may lead to scale-dependent couplings with nontrivial effects at large distance scales. Here we develop further the approach in which RG effects at large distance scales are fully encoded in an effective action and we apply it to cosmology. In order to evaluate the cosmological consequences, our main assumption is the use of a RG scale such that the (infrared) RG effects only appear at perturbative order (not at the background level). The emphasis here is on analytical results and qualitative understanding of the implied cosmology. We employ commonly used parametrizations for describing modified gravity in cosmology (as the slip parameter). From them, we describe the dynamics of the first order perturbations and estimate bounds on the single dimensionless parameter ($\nu$) introduced by this framework. Possible impacts on dark matter and dark energy are discussed. It is also shown here that the $\nu$ parameter effects to $f\sigma_8$ are stronger at low redshifts ($z, Comment: v3: 13 pages, 1 figure. Added $f\sigma_8$ analysis and text improvements. Version to appear in EPJC

We propose a new approach to investigate inflation in a model-independent way, and in particular to elaborate the involved observables, through the introduction of the "scale factor potential". Through its use one can immediately determine the inflation end, which corresponds to its first (and global) minimum. Additionally, we express the inflationary observables in terms of its logarithm, using as independent variable the e-folding number. As an example, we construct a new class of scalar potentials that can lead to the desired spectral index and tensor-to-scalar ratio, namely $n_s \approx 0.965$ and $r \sim 10^{-4}$ for 60 $e$-folds, in agreement with observations., Comment: Accepted for Publishing in EPJC

We study how the cosmological constraints from growth data are improved by including the measurements of bias from Dark Energy Survey (DES). In particular, we utilize the biasing properties of the DES Luminous Red Galaxies (LRGs) and the growth data provided by the various galaxy surveys in order to constrain the growth index ($\gamma$) of the linear matter perturbations. Considering a constant growth index we can put tight constraints, up to $\sim 10\%$ accuracy, on $\gamma$. Specifically, using the priors of the Dark Energy Survey and implementing a joint likelihood procedure between theoretical expectations and data we find that the best fit value is in between $\gamma=0.64\pm 0.075$ and $0.65\pm 0.063$. On the other hand utilizing the Planck priors we obtain $\gamma=0.680\pm 0.089$ and $0.690\pm 0.071$. This shows a small but non-zero deviation from General Relativity ($\gamma_{\rm GR}\approx 6/11$), nevertheless the confidence level is in the range $\sim 1.3-2\sigma$. Moreover, we find that the estimated mass of the dark-matter halo in which LRGs survive lies in the interval $\sim 6.2 \times 10^{12} h^{-1} M_{\odot}$ and $1.2 \times 10^{13} h^{-1} M_{\odot}$, for the different bias models. Finally, allowing $\gamma$ to evolve with redshift [Taylor expansion: $\gamma(z)=\gamma_{0}+\gamma_{1}z/(1+z)$] we find that the $(\gamma_{0},\gamma_{1})$ parameter solution space accommodates the GR prediction at $\sim 1.7-2.9\sigma$ levels., Comment: 8 pages, 3 figures, discussion added, to appear in European Physical Journal C (EPJC)

In the present article we study the cosmological evolution of a two-scalar field gravitational theory defined in the Jordan frame. Specifically, we assume one of the scalar fields to be minimally coupled to gravity, while the second field which is the Brans-Dicke scalar field is nonminimally coupled to gravity and also coupled to the other scalar field. In the Einstein frame this theory reduces to a two-scalar field theory where the two fields can interact only in the potential term, which means that the quintom theory is recovered. The cosmological evolution is studied by analyzing the equilibrium points of the field equations in the Jordan frame. We find that the theory can describe the cosmological evolution in large scales, while inflationary solutions are also provided., 38 pages, 13 figures, no tables