Nonminimal infrared gravitational reheating in light of ACT observation

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Main Authors: Chakraborty, Ayan, Maity, Debaprasad, Mondal, Rajesh
Format: Preprint
Published: 2025
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author Chakraborty, Ayan
Maity, Debaprasad
Mondal, Rajesh
author_facet Chakraborty, Ayan
Maity, Debaprasad
Mondal, Rajesh
contents Inflation is known to produce large infrared scalar fluctuations. Further, if a scalar field $(χ)$ is non-minimally coupled with gravity through $ξχ^2 R$, those infrared modes experience \textit{tachyonic instability} during and after inflation. Those large non-perturbative infrared modes can collectively produce hot Big Bang universe upon their horizon entry during the post-inflationary period. We indeed find that for reheating equation of state (EoS), $w_ϕ > 1/3$, and coupling strength, $ξ>1/6$, large infrared fluctuations lead to successful reheating. We further analyze perturbative reheating by solving the standard Boltzmann equation in both Jordan and Einstein frames, and compare the results with the non-perturbative ones. Finally, embedding this infrared reheating scenario into the well-known $α-$attractor inflationary model, we examine possible constraints on the model parameters in light of the latest ACT, DESI results. To arrive at the constraints, we take into account the latest bounds on tensor-to-scalar ratio, $r_{0.05}\leq 0.038$, isocurvature power spectrum, $\mathcal{P}_{\mathcal{S}} \lesssim 8.3\times 10^{-11}$, and effective number of relativistic degrees of freedom, $ΔN_{\rm eff} \lesssim 0.17 $. Subject to these constraints, we find successful reheating to occur only for EoS $w_ϕ\gtrsim 0.6$, which translates to a sub-class of $α-$attractor models being favored and placing them within the 2$σ$ region in the $ n_s-r$ plane of the latest ACT, DESI data. In this range of EoS, we find that the coupling strength should lie within $2.11\lesssimξ\lesssim 2.95$ for $w_ϕ=0.6$. Finally, we compute secondary gravitational wave signals induced by the scalar infrared modes, which are found to be strong enough to be detected by future GW observatories, namely BBO, DECIGO, LISA, and ET.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2506_02141
institution arXiv
publishDate 2025
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Nonminimal infrared gravitational reheating in light of ACT observation
Chakraborty, Ayan
Maity, Debaprasad
Mondal, Rajesh
Cosmology and Nongalactic Astrophysics
High Energy Physics - Phenomenology
High Energy Physics - Theory
Inflation is known to produce large infrared scalar fluctuations. Further, if a scalar field $(χ)$ is non-minimally coupled with gravity through $ξχ^2 R$, those infrared modes experience \textit{tachyonic instability} during and after inflation. Those large non-perturbative infrared modes can collectively produce hot Big Bang universe upon their horizon entry during the post-inflationary period. We indeed find that for reheating equation of state (EoS), $w_ϕ > 1/3$, and coupling strength, $ξ>1/6$, large infrared fluctuations lead to successful reheating. We further analyze perturbative reheating by solving the standard Boltzmann equation in both Jordan and Einstein frames, and compare the results with the non-perturbative ones. Finally, embedding this infrared reheating scenario into the well-known $α-$attractor inflationary model, we examine possible constraints on the model parameters in light of the latest ACT, DESI results. To arrive at the constraints, we take into account the latest bounds on tensor-to-scalar ratio, $r_{0.05}\leq 0.038$, isocurvature power spectrum, $\mathcal{P}_{\mathcal{S}} \lesssim 8.3\times 10^{-11}$, and effective number of relativistic degrees of freedom, $ΔN_{\rm eff} \lesssim 0.17 $. Subject to these constraints, we find successful reheating to occur only for EoS $w_ϕ\gtrsim 0.6$, which translates to a sub-class of $α-$attractor models being favored and placing them within the 2$σ$ region in the $ n_s-r$ plane of the latest ACT, DESI data. In this range of EoS, we find that the coupling strength should lie within $2.11\lesssimξ\lesssim 2.95$ for $w_ϕ=0.6$. Finally, we compute secondary gravitational wave signals induced by the scalar infrared modes, which are found to be strong enough to be detected by future GW observatories, namely BBO, DECIGO, LISA, and ET.
title Nonminimal infrared gravitational reheating in light of ACT observation
topic Cosmology and Nongalactic Astrophysics
High Energy Physics - Phenomenology
High Energy Physics - Theory
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2506.02141