No Starobinsky inflation from self-consistent semiclassical gravity

Journal Article · Sat Mar 14 23:00:00 EST 1992 · Physical Review, D (Particles Fields); (United States)

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevD.45.1953· OSTI ID:7048964

Simon, J Z ^[1]

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1. Department of Physics, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Milwaukee, Wisconsin 53201 (United States)

The same theory of semiclassical gravity that predicts Starobinsky inflation (de Sitter-like solutions driven only by higher-order curvature terms) also predicts flat space to be unstable to small perturbations. When semiclassical gravity is modified in a way suggested by and consistent with the perturbative nature of its derivation, flat space is predicted to be stable, in accord with observation, but Starobinsky inflation is no longer a solution. The modified semiclassical theory, constrained to only solutions perturbatively expandable in {h bar}, has the same dynamical degrees of freedom as the clasical gravitational field, despite the presence of fourth-order derivatives in the field equations. There are no de Sitter or de Sitter-like self-consistent solutions except in the presence of a cosmological constant, so inflation generated purely by curvature is not predicted. Furthermore, linearized gravitational perturbations in a de Sitter background (with a cosmological constant) show no signs of instability from quantum effects.

• OSTI ID: 7048964
• Journal Information: Physical Review, D (Particles Fields); (United States), Journal Name: Physical Review, D (Particles Fields); (United States) Vol. 45:6; ISSN PRVDA; ISSN 0556-2821
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

661310 -- Relativity & Gravitation-- (1992-)
662110* -- General Theory of Particles & Fields-- Theory of Fields & Strings-- (1992-)
71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS
GENERAL PHYSICS
72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS
COSMOLOGICAL CONSTANT
COSMOLOGICAL MODELS
EQUATIONS
FIELD EQUATIONS
FIELD THEORIES
GENERAL RELATIVITY THEORY
GRAVITATIONAL FIELDS
INFLATIONARY UNIVERSE
MATHEMATICAL MODELS
PERTURBATION THEORY
SELF-CONSISTENT FIELD
SEMICLASSICAL APPROXIMATION
SPACE-TIME
UNIVERSE