Constraints on the Variation of the Fine Structure Constant from Big Bang Nucleosynthesis

Abstract

We put bounds on the variation of the value of the fine structure constant $\alpha$, at the time of Big Bang nucleosynthesis. We study carefully all light elements up to ${}^7$Li. We correct a previous upper limit on $|\Delta \alpha /\alpha |$ estimated from ${}^4$He primordial abundance and we find interesting new potential limits (depending on the value of the baryon-to-photon ratio) from ${}^7$Li, whose production is governed to a large extent by Coulomb barriers. The presently unclear observational situation concerning the primordial abundances preclude a better limit than $|Δα/α| \lsim 2\cdot 10^{-2}$, two orders of magnitude less restrictive than previous bounds. In fact, each of the (mutually exclusive) scenarios of standard Big Bang nucleosynthesis proposed, one based on a high value of the measured deuterium primordial abundance and one based on a low value, may describe some aspects of data better if a change in $\alpha$ of this magnitude is assumed.

21 pages, eps figures embedded using epsfig macro

References in corpus (12)

• The String Dilaton and a Least Coupling Principle
• A Search for Time Variation of the Fine Structure Constant
• The Oklo bound on the time variation of the fine-structure constant revisited
• The primordial lithium abundance
• Sharpening the predictions of big-bang nucleosynthesis
• Astrophysical Limits on the Evolution of Dimensionless Physical Constants over Cosmological Time
• Nucleosynthesis and the Time Dependence of Fundamental Couplings
• Constraining Variations in the Fine-Structure Constant with the Cosmic Microwave Background
• Big bang nucleosynthesis limit on N_nu
• Revisiting Nucleosynthesis Constraints on Primordial Magnetic Fields
• New Limits on the Possible Variation of Physical Constants
• Neutron-induced nucleosynthesis

Cited by in corpus (85)

• The fundamental constants and their variation: observational status and theoretical motivations
• Magnetic Fields in the Early Universe
• Further Evidence for Cosmological Evolution of the Fine Structure Constant
• Varying constants, Gravitation and Cosmology
• Further evidence for a variable fine-structure constant from Keck/HIRES QSO absorption spectra
• Primordial Nucleosynthesis: from precision cosmology to fundamental physics
• New BBN limits on Physics Beyond the Standard Model from He4
• Possible evidence for a variable fine structure constant from QSO absorption lines: motivations, analysis and results
• Environmental Dependence of Masses and Coupling Constants
• Inflation and late-time cosmic acceleration in non-minimal Maxwell-$F(R)$ gravity and the generation of large-scale magnetic fields
• Implications of Gauge Unification for Time Variation of the Fine Structure Constant
• Coupled Variations of Fundamental Couplings and Primordial Nucleosynthesis
• Evolution of the Fine Structure Constant Driven by Dark Matter and the Cosmological Constant
• Inflationary cosmology and the late-time accelerated expansion of the universe in non-minimal Yang-Mills-$F(R)$ gravity and non-minimal vector-$F(R)$ gravity
• Constraints on the Variations of the Fundamental Couplings
• Early-universe constraints on a time-varying fine structure constant
• The Quark-Mass Dependence of Two-Nucleon Systems
• Probing Physics Beyond the Standard Model: Limits from BBN and the CMB Independently and Combined
• Variation of Fundamental Couplings and Nuclear Forces
• Single-Brane Cosmological Solutions with a Stable Compact Extra Dimension
• Cosmological variation of deuteron binding energy, strong interaction and quark masses from big bang nucleosynthesis
• Looking for a varying $\alpha$ in the Cosmic Microwave Background
• Cosmic concordance and the fine structure constant
• Models of quintessence coupled to the electromagnetic field and the cosmological evolution of alpha
• A Re-examination of the ${}^{187}$Re Bound on the Variation of Fundamental Couplings
• Limits on Cosmological Variation of Strong Interaction and Quark Masses from Big Bang Nucleosynthesis, Cosmic, Laboratory and Oklo Data
• Time Variation of the Fine Structure Constant Driven by Quintessence
• Probing Quintessence with Time Variation of Couplings
• Primordial nucleosynthesis as a probe of fundamental physics parameters
• Primordial nucleosynthesis with a varying fine structure constant: An improved estimate
• Crossover quintessence and cosmological history of fundamental "constants"
• Nucleosynthesis and the variation of fundamental couplings
• The $\alpha$-dependence of transition frequencies for ions Si II, Cr II, Fe II, Ni II, and Zn II
• Quintessence Models and the Cosmological Evolution of alpha
• Astronomical Constraints on the Cosmic Evolution of the Fine Structure Constant and Possible Quantum Dimensions
• Constraining the variation of the coupling constants with big bang nucleosynthesis
• Big Bang nucleosynthesis and cosmic microwave background constraints on the time variation of the Higgs vacuum expectation value
• The Degree of Fine-Tuning in our Universe -- and Others
• Planck intermediate results. XXIV. Constraints on variation of fundamental constants
• The variation of fundamental constants and the role of A=5 and A=8 nuclei on primordial nucleosynthesis
• Primordial nucleosynthesis with varying fundamental constants: Improved constraints and a possible solution to the Lithium problem
• Extension of thermonuclear functions through the pathway model including Maxwell-Boltzmann and Tsallis distributions
• Time Variations in the Scale of Grand Unification
• Primordial Nucleosynthesis with varying fundamental constants: A semi-analytical approach
• Big bang nucleosynthesis with a varying fine structure constant and non-standard expansion rate
• Constraining non standard recombination: A worked example
• The minimally extended Varying Speed of Light (meVSL)
• VSL theories and the Doppler peak
• Constraints on Dirac-Born-Infeld type dark energy models from varying alpha
• Early Universe Constraints on Time Variation of Fundamental Constants
• CMB constraints on the fine structure constant
• The Fine-structure Constant as a Probe of Chemical Evolution and AGB Nucleosynthesis in Damped Lyman-alpha Systems
• The Effect of Bound Dineutrons upon BBN
• Helium and Deuterium Abundances as a Test for the Time Variation of the Fine Structure Constant and the Higgs Vacuum Expectation Value
• Variation in the fine-structure constant, distance-duality relation and the next generation of high-resolution spectrograph
• Variable-Speed-of-Light Cosmology from Brane World Scenario
• Spatio-temporal Chaos and Vacuum Fluctuations of Quantized Fields
• On the cosmological evolution of alpha and mu and the dynamics of dark energy
• BBN and Lambda_QCD
• Time Evolution of the Fine Structure Constant in a Two-Field Quintessence Model
• Fundamental constants and tests of general relativity - Theoretical and cosmological considerations
• Big Bang Nucleosynthesis Constraints on Universal Extra Dimensions and Varying Fundamental Constants
• Time variation of the fine structure constant in the early universe and the Bekenstein model
• Time variation of the electron mass in the early universe and the Barrow-Magueijo model
• On extended thermonuclear functions through pathway model
• The Fractional Kinetic Equation and Thermonuclear Functions
• Big Bang Nucleosynthesis with an Evolving Radion in the Brane World Scenario
• Fine Structure Constant Variation from a Late Phase Transition
• Primordial nucleosynthesis with varying fundamental constants: Degeneracies with cosmological parameters
• Big Bang Nucleosynthesis Constraints on the Self-Gravity of Pressure
• Variation of the fine structure constant in the light of recent helium abundance measurement
• Phase transition in the fine structure constant
• Can our Universe be inhomogeneous on large sub-horizon scales ?
• Constraints on Field Theoretical Models for Variation of the Fine Structure Constant
• Impact of the matter density uncertainty on the dark energy reconstruction
• Spatial variation of fundamental constants: testing models with thermonuclear supernovae
• Big Bang Nucleosynthesis with Stable ${}^8$Be and the Primordial Lithium Problem
• Temporal variation of coupling constants and nucleosynthesis
• Magnetic contributions in Bekenstein type models
• Quantifying the sensitivity of Big Bang Nucleosynthesis to isospin breaking with input from lattice QCD
• Assessing the viability of successful reconstruction of the dynamics of dark energy using varying fundamental couplings
• Variations of the Fine Structure Constant in Space and Time
• Search for Variations of Fundamental Constants
• Dilaton Stabilization and Inflation in the D-brane World
• Analytical Study of Thermonuclear Reaction Probability Integrals