Quantum Field Dynamics in Cosmological Contexts
Summary
Quantum field dynamics in cosmological contexts explores how quantum fields propagate, interact and fluctuate within an expanding universe. Central to this field is the study of vacuum states on curved spacetimes, most notably the Bunch–Davies vacuum, which provides the baseline for perturbations in inflationary cosmology. Quantum fluctuations of scalar and tensor fields seeded during inflation are stretched to macroscopic scales, setting the initial conditions for structure formation and the cosmic microwave background anisotropies. Renormalisation group techniques are used to track the scale dependence of coupling constants and potentials as the universe cools, while effective field theory frameworks ensure that calculations remain well defined up to the Planck scale. Beyond inflation, quantum entanglement between causally disconnected regions can imprint subtle modulations on large-scale correlations, offering new windows on the multiverse hypothesis and the long-range structure of spacetime. Recent advances have addressed non-standard initial conditions, the role of higher-order loop corrections, and the interplay between particle physics models and cosmological observables, illustrating the profound connections between microscopic quantum processes and the global evolution of the universe.
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Quantum Field Dynamics in Cosmological Contexts publication trend
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Technical terms
Bunch–Davies vacuum: The standard choice of vacuum state for quantum fields in an inflationary de Sitter background, minimising excitations at early times.
Bogoliubov transformation: A linear change of basis relating different vacuum or mode expansions of a quantum field, central to particle production calculations.
Effective field theory: A framework that describes low-energy phenomena without requiring knowledge of high-energy (UV) physics, valid below a cutoff scale.
Entanglement entropy: A measure of quantum correlations between spatially or causally separated regions obtained from the reduced density matrix.
Tensor-to-scalar ratio: The relative amplitude of primordial gravitational wave perturbations to density perturbations, a key inflationary observable.
References
- Single field inflation in the light of Pulsar Timing Array Data: quintessential interpretation of blue tilted tensor spectrum through Non-Bunch Davies initial condition. European Physical Journal C (2024).
- Impact of quantum entanglement on spectrum of cosmological fluctuations. Journal of Cosmology and Astroparticle Physics (2014).
- Entangled de Sitter from stringy axionic Bell pair I: an analysis using Bunch–Davies vacuum. European Physical Journal C (2018).
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