Time evolution of the equation of state during perturbative reheating and its impact on the inflationary tensor perturbation spectrum

Fuente: arXiv
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Main Authors: Ghosh, Avirup, Ghosh, Deep
Format: Preprint
Published: 2024
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author Ghosh, Avirup
Ghosh, Deep
author_facet Ghosh, Avirup
Ghosh, Deep
contents The spectrum of inflationary tensor perturbations is one of the very few available probes of the post-inflationary reheating epoch, and it is strongly influenced by the Universe's equation of state during this period. In the current era of precision cosmology, an accurate estimation of this primordial tensor perturbation spectrum is crucial. Unlike the conventional assumption of a constant equation of state during the perturbative reheating phase, in this work we dynamically calculate the time evolution of the reheating equation of state for different values of the inflaton decay rates including their possible time-dependence in some cases. We further investigate its impact on the spectrum of primordial tensor perturbations, focusing on two different inflationary potentials of the E-model α-attractor class, with n=1 and n=3. Using this approach, our results indicate that the inflationary tensor perturbations can be enhanced (or suppressed) by a factor of {\sim} 1.5-3 compared to standard calculations assuming a constant inflaton equation of state. Such a variation arises because the evolution of the comoving horizon differs in the two approaches, causing different comoving momentum modes to re-enter the horizon at different times and undergo distinct evolutions.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2411_02052
institution arXiv
publishDate 2024
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Time evolution of the equation of state during perturbative reheating and its impact on the inflationary tensor perturbation spectrum
Ghosh, Avirup
Ghosh, Deep
General Relativity and Quantum Cosmology
The spectrum of inflationary tensor perturbations is one of the very few available probes of the post-inflationary reheating epoch, and it is strongly influenced by the Universe's equation of state during this period. In the current era of precision cosmology, an accurate estimation of this primordial tensor perturbation spectrum is crucial. Unlike the conventional assumption of a constant equation of state during the perturbative reheating phase, in this work we dynamically calculate the time evolution of the reheating equation of state for different values of the inflaton decay rates including their possible time-dependence in some cases. We further investigate its impact on the spectrum of primordial tensor perturbations, focusing on two different inflationary potentials of the E-model α-attractor class, with n=1 and n=3. Using this approach, our results indicate that the inflationary tensor perturbations can be enhanced (or suppressed) by a factor of {\sim} 1.5-3 compared to standard calculations assuming a constant inflaton equation of state. Such a variation arises because the evolution of the comoving horizon differs in the two approaches, causing different comoving momentum modes to re-enter the horizon at different times and undergo distinct evolutions.
title Time evolution of the equation of state during perturbative reheating and its impact on the inflationary tensor perturbation spectrum
topic General Relativity and Quantum Cosmology
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2411.02052