Showing papers by "Alan H. Guth published in 2008"
TL;DR: In this article, the scale-factor cutoff was applied to the probability distribution of the cosmological constant λ, and the results were in good agreement with the observed values.
Abstract: It is well known that anthropic selection from a landscape with a flat prior distribution of cosmological constant {lambda} gives a reasonable fit to observation. However, a realistic model of the multiverse has a physical volume that diverges with time, and the predicted distribution of {lambda} depends on how the spacetime volume is regulated. A very promising method of regulation uses a scale-factor cutoff, which avoids a number of serious problems that arise in other approaches. In particular, the scale-factor cutoff avoids the 'youngness problem' (high probability of living in a much younger universe) and the 'Q and G catastrophes' (high probability for the primordial density contrast Q and gravitational constant G to have extremely large or small values). We apply the scale-factor cutoff measure to the probability distribution of {lambda}, considering both positive and negative values. The results are in good agreement with observation. In particular, the scale-factor cutoff strongly suppresses the probability for values of {lambda} that are more than about 10 times the observed value. We also discuss qualitatively the prediction for the density parameter {omega}, indicating that with this measure there is a possibility of detectable negative curvature.
128 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors consider a (1+1) dimensional scalar field theory that supports oscillons, which are localized, oscillatory, stable solutions to nonlinear equations of motion, and show that oscillons now lose energy, but at a rate that is exponentially small when the expansion rate is slow.
Abstract: We consider a (1+1) dimensional scalar field theory that supports oscillons, which are localized, oscillatory, stable solutions to nonlinear equations of motion. We study this theory in an expanding background and show that oscillons now lose energy, but at a rate that is exponentially small when the expansion rate is slow. We also show numerically that a universe that starts with (almost) thermal initial conditions will cool to a final state where a significant fraction of the energy of the universe--on the order of 50%--is stored in oscillons. If this phenomenon persists in realistic models, oscillons may have cosmological consequences.
69 citations