6533b7dcfe1ef96bd1272c1f
RESEARCH PRODUCT
Cosmic implications of a low-scale solution to the axion domain wall problem
Andrea CaputoMario Reigsubject
Quantum chromodynamicsPhysicsInstantonParticle physicsCosmology and Nongalactic Astrophysics (astro-ph.CO)010308 nuclear & particles physicsDark matterHigh Energy Physics::PhenomenologyFOS: Physical sciencesInverse01 natural sciencesHidden sectorDomain wall (string theory)High Energy Physics - PhenomenologyHigh Energy Physics - Phenomenology (hep-ph)0103 physical sciences010306 general physicsAxionEnergy (signal processing)Astrophysics - Cosmology and Nongalactic Astrophysicsdescription
The post-inflationary breaking of Peccei-Quinn (PQ) symmetry can lead to the cosmic domain wall catastrophe. In this Letter we show how to avoid domain walls implementing the Instanton Interference Effect (IIE) with a new interaction which itself breaks PQ symmetry and confines at an energy scale smaller than $\Lambda_{QCD}$. We give a general description of the mechanism and consider its cosmological implications and constraints within a minimal model. Contrary to other mechanisms we do not require an inverse phase transition neither fine-tuned bias terms. Incidentally, the mechanism leads to the introduction of new self-interacting dark matter candidates and the possibility of producing gravitational waves in the frequency range of SKA. Unless a fine-tuned hidden sector is introduced, the mechanism predicts a QCD axion in the mass range $1\text{ meV}-15\text{ meV}$.
| year | journal | country | edition | language |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019-09-23 | Physical Review D |