Elements of String Cosmology

Erscheinungsjahr 2011
ISBN: 978-0-521-86875-4
Verlag: Cambridge University Press

Buch, Englisch, 568 Seiten, Format (B × H): 183 mm x 260 mm, Gewicht: 1253 g

The standard cosmological picture of our Universe emerging from a 'big bang' leaves open many fundamental questions which string theory, a unified theory of all forces of nature, should be able to answer. The first book dedicated to string cosmology, it contains a pedagogical introduction to the basic notions of the subject. It describes the new possible scenarios suggested by string theory for the primordial evolution of our Universe. It discusses the main phenomenological consequences of these scenarios, stresses their differences from each other, and compares them to the more conventional models of inflation. The book summarizes over 15 years of research in this field and introduces current advances. It is self-contained, so it can be read by astrophysicists with no knowledge of string theory, and high-energy physicists with little understanding of cosmology. Detailed and explicit derivations of all the results presented provide a deeper appreciation of the subject.

Autoren/Hrsg.

Gasperini, Maurizio

Fachgebiete

• Naturwissenschaften Physik Quantenphysik Hochenergiephysik
• Naturwissenschaften Astronomie Kosmologie, Urknalltheorie
• Naturwissenschaften Astronomie Astrophysik
• Naturwissenschaften Physik Angewandte Physik Astrophysik

Inhaltsverzeichnis

Preface; Acknowledgements; Notation, units and conventions; 1. A short review of standard and inflationary cosmology; 2. The basic string cosmology equations; 3. Conformal invariance and string effective action; 4. Duality symmetries and cosmological solutions; 5. Inflationary kinematics; 6. The string phase; 7. The cosmic background of relic gravitational waves; 8. Scalar perturbations and the anisotropy of the CMB radiation; 9. Dilaton phenomenology; 10. Elements of brane cosmology; Index.

Über Autor(innen)

Gasperini, Maurizio
MAURIZIO GASPERINI is Professor of Theoretical Physics at the Physics Department of the University of Bari, Italy. He has authored several publications on gravitational theory, high-energy physics, cosmology, and has twice received the Award for Essays on Gravitation from the Gravity Research Foundation (1996 and 1998).