Inflation after false vacuum decay: new evidence from BICEP2
- Center for Theoretical Physics and Department of Physics, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720 (United States)
- Princeton Center for Theoretical Science, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08540 (United States)
- Stanford Institute for Theoretical Physics, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94306 (United States)
Last year we argued that if slow-roll inflation followed the decay of a false vacuum in a large landscape, the steepening of the scalar potential between the inflationary plateau and the barrier generically leads to a potentially observable suppression of the scalar power spectrum at large distances. Here we revisit this analysis in light of the recent BICEP2 results. Assuming that both the BICEP2 B-mode signal and the Planck analysis of temperature fluctuations hold up, we find that the data now discriminate more sharply between our scenario and ΛCDM. Nonzero tensor modes exclude standard ΛCDM with notable but not yet conclusive confidence: at ∼3.8σ if r = 0.2, or at ∼ 3.5σ if r = 0.15. Of the two steepening models of our previous work, one is now ruled out by existing bounds on spatial curvature. The other entirely reconciles the tension between BICEP2 and Planck. Upcoming EE polarization measurements have the potential to rule out unmodified ΛCDM decisively. Next generation Large Scale Structure surveys can further increase the significance. More precise measurements of BB at low ℓ will help distinguish our scenario from other explanations. If steepening is confirmed, the prospects for detecting open curvature increase but need not be large.
- OSTI ID:
- 22382084
- Journal Information:
- Journal of Cosmology and Astroparticle Physics, Vol. 2014, Issue 12; Other Information: Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); ISSN 1475-7516
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
Similar Records
Planck 2015 results: XX. Constraints on inflation
BICEP2 implications for single-field slow-roll inflation revisited