- #1
edgepflow
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I hope someone can help me understand some inflation principles.
In Alan Guth's popular book: The Inflationary Universe, he presents a schematic of a false vacuum universe decaying into pocket universes. The false vacuum expands exponentially as the pocket universes are continuously generated. The process continues into the future forever.
Now in the chaotic eternal inflation theory originally proposed by Linde, a scalar field potential (of the form V = m * Phi ^2 / 2) exists and inflation happens as the scalar field, Phi, rolls down the potential energy curve.
As Guth points out in his 2007 paper, in one Hubble time during inflation, the volume will increase by a factor of e^3 = 20. As the scalar field is rolling, quantum fluctuations may make the positive change in Phi greater than the classic decrease in Phi. So if the chance of this happening is > 1/20, then chaotic inflation is eternal.
This leads to my question. The false vacuum / pocket universe model seems to have a bunch of separate space time regions. But the choatic eternal inflation seems to be separate regions in the same space time. Is this correct?
In Alan Guth's popular book: The Inflationary Universe, he presents a schematic of a false vacuum universe decaying into pocket universes. The false vacuum expands exponentially as the pocket universes are continuously generated. The process continues into the future forever.
Now in the chaotic eternal inflation theory originally proposed by Linde, a scalar field potential (of the form V = m * Phi ^2 / 2) exists and inflation happens as the scalar field, Phi, rolls down the potential energy curve.
As Guth points out in his 2007 paper, in one Hubble time during inflation, the volume will increase by a factor of e^3 = 20. As the scalar field is rolling, quantum fluctuations may make the positive change in Phi greater than the classic decrease in Phi. So if the chance of this happening is > 1/20, then chaotic inflation is eternal.
This leads to my question. The false vacuum / pocket universe model seems to have a bunch of separate space time regions. But the choatic eternal inflation seems to be separate regions in the same space time. Is this correct?