Thesis

Particle production in inflationary cosmology

• Call:

  PT-CERN Call 2020/2

• Academic Year:

  2020/2021

• Domain:

  Astroparticle Physics

• Supervisor:

  João Rosa

• Co-Supervisor:

  Roberto Vega-Morales

• Institution:

  Universidade de Coimbra

• Host Institution:

  CFISUC - Centro de Fisica da Universidade de Coimbra

• Abstract:

  In this research proposal the candidate will explore inflationary models of the early universe where the effects of interactions between the inflaton and other fields present in the cosmic plasma play a crucial role. These effects lead to warm inflation scenarios and to dark matter production mechanisms. The aim of this research proposal is then to incorporate these mechanisms into concrete particle physics frameworks and to investigate the impact that they may have on the cosmic history, analysing in particular the production of dark matter and baryon asymmetries, thermal effects on the dynamics of the inflaton field and radiation perturbations and the associated observational and laboratory signatures. The candidate will conduct research at both the University of Coimbra, Portugal, and the University of Granada, Spain.