On the three primordial numbers
- Institute for Theoretical Physics and Center for Extreme Matter and Emergent Phenomena, Utrecht University, Leuvenlaan 4, 3584 CE Utrecht (Netherlands)
- Van Swinderen Institute for Particle Physics and Gravity, University of Groningen, Nijenborgh 4, 9747 AG Groningen (Netherlands)
Cosmological observations have provided us with the measurement of just three numbers that characterize the very early universe: 1−n{sub s} , N and ln Δ{sub R}{sup 2}. Although each of the three numbers individually carries limited information about the physics of inflation, one may hope to extract non-trivial information from relations among them. Invoking minimality, namely the absence of ad hoc large numbers, we find two viable and mutually exclusive inflationary scenarios. The first is the well-known inverse relation between 1− n{sub s} and N. The second implies a new relation between 1−n{sub s} and ln Δ{sub R}{sup 2}, which might provide us with a handle on the beginning of inflation and predicts the intriguing lower bound on the tensor-to-scalar ratio r > 0.006 (95% CL)
- OSTI ID:
- 22525361
- Journal Information:
- Journal of Cosmology and Astroparticle Physics, Vol. 2015, Issue 09; Other Information: Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); ISSN 1475-7516
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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