A case for kinetically dominated initial conditions for inflation

We make a case for setting initial conditions for inflation at the Planck epoch in the kinetically dominated regime. For inflationary potentials with a plateau or a hill, i.e. potentials that are bounded from above within a certain region of interest, we cannot claim complete ignorance of the energy...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published inarXiv.org
Main Authors Hergt, L T, Handley, W J, Hobson, M P, Lasenby, A N
Format Paper Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Ithaca Cornell University Library, arXiv.org 19.09.2018
Subjects
Energy distribution
Initial conditions
Physics - Cosmology and Nongalactic Astrophysics
Physics - General Relativity and Quantum Cosmology
Potential energy
Online AccessGet full text

Cover

More Information
Summary:We make a case for setting initial conditions for inflation at the Planck epoch in the kinetically dominated regime. For inflationary potentials with a plateau or a hill, i.e. potentials that are bounded from above within a certain region of interest, we cannot claim complete ignorance of the energy distribution between kinetic and potential energy, and equipartition of energy at the Planck epoch becomes questionable. We analyse different classes of potentials in phase-space and quantify the fraction of the Planck surface that is kinetically dominated. For the small amplitudes of the potentials as suggested by current data, the Planck surface lies in the region of kinetic dominance for almost all values of interest of the inflaton field.
ISSN:2331-8422
DOI:10.48550/arxiv.1809.07185