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Full-Text Articles in Physics
Effective Field Theories In Cosmology, Riccardo Penco
Effective Field Theories In Cosmology, Riccardo Penco
Physics - Dissertations
During the last 20 years, a large amount of detailed cosmological observations have promoted cosmology to the rank of high-precision science. Remarkably, all the observations currently available can be accounted for by assuming that (i) the universe is approximately homogeneous and isotropic on large scales, (ii) gravitational interactions are described by General Relativity with a non-vanishing cosmological constant and (ii) 85% of the matter content of the universe is in the form of dark matter, a presently unknown type of matter which interacts with ordinary matter only gravitationally. Current theoretical efforts are focused on …
Topics In Cosmic Acceleration And Braneworlds, Eric J. West
Topics In Cosmic Acceleration And Braneworlds, Eric J. West
Physics - Dissertations
Cosmic acceleration has come to be a standard, and perhaps required, ingredient in our current understanding of the universe. In the early universe, under the name of inflation, a phase of accelerated expansion is used to solve many problems with the standard Hot Big Bang cosmology. In the late universe, cosmic acceleration seems to best explain a wide variety of observations. In both cases, we lack a complete theory of what drives cosmic acceleration. In this thesis I discuss some open issues in our understanding of cosmic acceleration, both in the early and late universe.