Electrically charged curvaton

Abstract

We consider the possibility that the primordial curvature perturbation was generated through the curvaton mechanism from a scalar field with an electric charge, or precisely the Standard Model U(1) weak hypercharge. This links the dynamics of the very early universe concretely to the Standard Model of particle physics, and because the coupling strength is known, it reduces the number of free parameters in the curvaton model. The gauge coupling also introduces several new physical effects. Charge fluctuations are generated during inflation, but they are screened by electron-positron pairs therefore do not violate observational constraints. After inflation, the curvaton interacts with thermal radiation which destroys the curvaton condensate and prevents the generation of curvature perturbations, unless the inflaton dynamics satisfy strong constraints. The curvaton also experiences a period of parametric resonance with the U(1) gauge field. Using the standard perturbative approach, we find that the model can generate the observed density perturbation for Hubble rate H_* > 10^8 GeV and curvaton mass m > 0.01 H_*, but with a level of non-Gaussianity (f_NL > 130) that violates observational constraints. However, previous studies have shown that the parametric resonance changes the predicted perturbations significantly, and therefore fully non-linear numerical field theory simulations are required.

20 pages, 6 figures; updated to match journal version (JCAP)

References in corpus (21)

• Seven-Year Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe (WMAP) Observations: Cosmological Interpretation
• Big Bang Nucleosynthesis (in "The Review of Particle Properties" 2004)
• Reheating after Inflation
• Generating the curvature perturbation without an inflaton
• Adiabatic CMB perturbations in pre-big bang string cosmology
• Effects of Cosmological Moduli Fields on Cosmic Microwave Background
• Equilibrium State of a Massless Self-Interacting Scalar Field in the De Sitter Background
• Nongaussian Isocurvature Perturbations from Inflation
• Running Kinetic Inflation
• Lattice calculation of non-Gaussianity from preheating
• Non-Gaussian Fingerprints of Self-Interacting Curvaton
• Constraints on the Electrical Charge Asymmetry of the Universe
• Non-Gaussianity from massless preheating
• The Subdominant Curvaton
• Spectator field dynamics in de Sitter and curvaton initial conditions
• Phase transitions from preheating in gauge theories
• Non-Gaussianity in Cosmic Microwave Background Temperature Fluctuations from Cosmic (Super-)Strings
• Non-Gaussianity from resonant curvaton decay
• Parametric Decay of the Curvaton
• Damping Rate of a Scalar Particle in Hot Scalar QED
• Curvaton model completed

Cited by in corpus (5)

• On the Anisotropy of the Gravitational Wave Background from Massless Preheating
• The charged inflaton and its gauge fields: preheating and initial conditions for reheating
• Curvaton Decay by Resonant Production of the Standard Model Higgs
• Quantifying the 'naturalness' of the curvaton model
• Isotropic charged cosmologies in infrared-modified electrodynamics