September 11, 1997
Radiation domination at the electroweak epoch is a simplifying assumption, but one for which there is no observational basis. Treating the expansion rate as a variable, I re-examine electroweak baryogenesis in various scenarios. At a first order phase transition the main effect is on the sphaleron bound, which becomes a lower bound on the expansion rate in any given theory. At a second-order or cross-over phase transition, the created baryon asymmetry is directly proportional to the expansion rate. I sketch an alternative post-inflationary cosmology, in which the kinetic energy of a scalar field dominates the Universe until shortly before nucleosynthesis, and argue that the observed baryon asymmetry could be produced in this case even at an analytic cross-over.
Similar papers 1
June 4, 1996
The standard requirement for the production of baryons at the electroweak phase transition, that the phase transition be first order and the sphaleron bound be satisfied, is predicated on the assumption of a radiation dominated universe at that epoch. One simple alternative - domination by the energy in a kinetic mode of a scalar field which scales as $1/a^6$ - gives a significantly weakened sphaleron bound for the preservation of a baryon asymmetry produced at a first-order ...
September 12, 1997
The usual sphaleron bound and the statement of the impossibility of baryon production at a second order phase transition or analytic cross-over are reformulated in the first part of the paper as requirements of the expansion rate of the Universe at the electroweak scale. With an (exact or effective) additional contribution to the energy density scaling as 1/a^6, which dominates until just before nucleosynthesis, the observed baryon asymmetry may be produced at the electroweak...
February 17, 2000
In this study we examine post-inflationary cosmologies dominated by a scalar field with the equation of state: p_phi=w_phi rho_phi (0 leq w_phi leq 1) in order to facilitate baryogenesis at the electroweak scale. We take a more conventional approach from one in Ref. 1 [Joyce, Prokopec] and assume that the Universe reheats by the scalar field decay before the nucleosynthesis epoch, and find a larger expansion rate at the electroweak scale than the one obtained in Ref. 1. The d...
November 25, 1999
We discuss the possibility of generating the baryon asymmetry of the Universe when the temperature of the Universe is much below the electroweak scale. In our model the evaporation of primordial black holes or the decay of massive particles re-heats the surrounding plasma to temperatures above the electroweak transition temperature leading to the restoration of electroweak symmetry locally. The symmetry is broken again spontaneously as the plasma cools and a baryon asymmetry ...
February 24, 2000
The origin of the matter-antimatter asymmetry remains one of the most fundamental problems of cosmology. In this talk I present a novel scenario for baryogenesis at the electroweak scale, without the need for a first order phase transition. It is based on the out of equilibrium resonant production of long wavelength Higgs and gauge configurations, at the end of a period of inflation, which induces a large rate of sphaleron transitions, before thermalization at a temperature b...
June 12, 1992
It now seems plausible that the observed baryon asymmetry may have been produced at the electroweak phase transition. We review the considerations which lead to this conclusion, focusing on the obstacles to making reliable estimates. These arise from incomplete knowledge of baryon-violating rates near the phase transition, our limited understanding of the phase transition itself, and incomplete understanding of the mechanisms which actually lead to an asymmetry.
January 24, 1996
We investigate whether baryogenesis is possible at a second order electroweak phase transition. We find that under rather general conditions, the departure from thermal equilibrium is suppressed by the expansion rate of the Universe, and hence baryon production is also suppressed by the expansion rate. We conclude that if no additional sources of departure from thermal equilibrium such as topological defects are present, then electroweak baryogenesis is ruled out if the phase...
December 14, 2001
We reanalyse the sphaleron bound of electroweak baryogenesis when allowing deviations to the Friedmann equation. These modifications are well motivated in the context of brane cosmology where they appear without being in conflict with major experimental constraints on four-dimensional gravity. While suppressed at the time of nucleosynthesis, these corrections can dominate at the time of the electroweak phase transition and in certain cases provide the amount of expansion need...
February 22, 1999
We propose a new alternative for baryogenesis which resolves a number of the problems associated with GUT and electroweak scenarios, and which may allow baryogenesis even in modest extensions of the standard model. If the universe never reheats above the electroweak scale following inflation, GUT baryon production does not occur and at the same time thermal sphalerons, gravitinos and monopoles are not produced in abundance. Nevertheless, non-thermal production of sphaleron co...
August 21, 1995
The realisation that the electroweak anomaly can induce significant baryon number violation at high temperature and that the standard models of particle physics and cosmology contain all the ingredients needed for baryogenesis has led to vigourous search for viable models. The conclusions so far are that the Standard Model of particle physics cannot produce baryon asymmetry of required magnitude. It has too little $CP$ violation and sphaleronic transitions wipe out any asymme...