Constraints on the strength of a primordial magnetic field from big bang nucleosynthesis
- Department of Astronomy, University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign, 1002 West Green Street, Urbana, Illinois 61801 (United States) Department of Astronomy Astrophysics, The University of Chicago, 5640 South Ellis Avenue, Chicago, Illinois 60637 (United States) NASA/Fermilab Astrophysics Center, Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory, P.O. Box 500, Batavia, Illinois 60510 (United States)
The effects of magnetic fields on big bang nucleosynthesis (BBN) are calculated, and the impact on the abundances of the light elements are investigated numerically. An upper limit on the strength of primordial magnetic fields compatible with observations of light element abundances is thus obtained. In the framework of standard BBN theory, the maximum strength of the primordial magnetic fields, on scales greater than 10[sup 4] cm but smaller than the event horizon at the BBN epoch ([similar to]1 min, [similar to]2[times]10[sup 12] cm), is [le]10[sup 11] G. This limit is shown to allow magnetic fields at the time of recombination no stronger than [similar to]0.1 G on scales [ge]10[sup 11] cm. Our results also strongly indicate that, at the BBN epoch, and for field strengths [ital B][le]10[sup 13] G, the effects of magnetic fields on the primordial abundances of light elements are dominated by effects from reaction rates in the presence of primeval magnetic fields rather than by magnetic density effects on the expansion rate.
- DOE Contract Number:
- FG02-91ER40606
- OSTI ID:
- 7271494
- Journal Information:
- Physical Review, D (Particles Fields); (United States), Vol. 49:10; ISSN 0556-2821
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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