Spherical collapse in quintessence models with zero speed of sound (2009)
Creminelli, Paolo, D'Amico, Guido, Noreña, Jorge, Senatore, Leonardo, Vernizzi, Filippo
We study the spherical collapse model in the presence of quintessence with zero speed of sound. This case is particularly motivated for w
Senatore, Leonardo, Smith, Kendrick M., Zaldarriaga, Matias
Using the recently developed effective field theory of inflation, we argue that the size and the shape of the non-Gaussianities generated by single-field inflation are generically well described by...
Observing the Evolution of the Universe (2009)
Aguirre, James, Amblard, Alexandre, Ashoorioon, Amjad, Baccigalupi, Carlo, Balbi, Amedeo, Bartlett, James, ...
How did the universe evolve? The fine angular scale (l>1000) temperature and polarization anisotropies in the CMB are a Rosetta stone for understanding the evolution of the universe. Through detailed...
Contributions to the Dark Matter 3-Pt Function from the Radiation Era (2009)
Fitzpatrick, A. Liam, Senatore, Leonardo, Zaldarriaga, Matias
We consider the contribution to the three-point function of matter density fluctuations from nonlinear growth after modes re-enter the horizon, and discuss effects that must be included in order to...
Green, Daniel, Horn, Bart, Senatore, Leonardo, Silverstein, Eva
We analyze a distinctive mechanism for inflation in which particle production slows down a scalar field on a steep potential, and show how it descends from angular moduli in string compactifications....
Optimal limits on f_{NL}^{local} from WMAP 5-year data (2009)
Smith, Kendrick M., Senatore, Leonardo, Zaldarriaga, Matias
We have applied the optimal estimator for f_{NL}^{local} to the 5 year WMAP data. Marginalizing over the amplitude of foreground templates we get -4 < f_{NL}^{local} < 80 at 95% CL. Error bars of...
Cosmological Perturbations at Second Order and Recombination Perturbed (2008)
Senatore, Leonardo, Tassev, Svetlin, Zaldarriaga, Matias
We derive the full set of second-order equations governing the evolution of cosmological perturbations, including the effects of the first-order electron number density perturbations, \delta_e. We...
Non-Gaussianities from Perturbing Recombination (2008)
Senatore, Leonardo, Tassev, Svetlin, Zaldarriaga, Matias
We approximately compute the bispectrum induced on the CMB by fluctuations in the standard recombination history. Of all the second order sources that can induce non-Gaussianity during recombination,...
The Volume of the Universe after Inflation and de Sitter Entropy (2008)
Dubovsky, Sergei, Senatore, Leonardo, Villadoro, Giovanni
We calculate the probability distribution for the volume of the Universe after slow-roll inflation both in the eternal and in the non-eternal regime. Far from the eternal regime the probability...
CMBPol Mission Concept Study: Probing Inflation with CMB Polarization (2008)
Baumann, Daniel, Jackson, Mark G, Adshead, Peter, Amblard, Alexandre, Ashoorioon, Amjad, Bartolo, Nicola, ...
We summarize the utility of precise cosmic microwave background (CMB) polarization measurements as probes of the physics of inflation. We focus on the prospects for using CMB measurements to...
CMBPol Mission Concept Study: Probing Inflation with CMB Polarization (2008)
Baumann, Daniel, Jackson, Mark G., Adshead, Peter, Amblard, Alexandre, Ashoorioon, Amjad, Bartolo, Nicola, ...
We summarize the utility of precise cosmic microwave background (CMB) polarization measurements as probes of the physics of inflation. We focus on the prospects for using CMB measurements to...
The Phase Transition to Eternal Inflation (2008)
Creminelli, Paolo, Dubovsky, Sergei, Nicolis, Alberto, Senatore, Leonardo, Zaldarriaga, Matias
For slow-roll inflation we study the phase transition to the eternal regime. Starting from a finite inflationary volume, we consider the volume of the universe at reheating as order parameter. We...
(No) Eternal Inflation and Precision Higgs Physics (2008)
Arkani-Hamed, Nima, Dubovsky, Sergei, Senatore, Leonardo, Villadoro, Giovanni
Even if nothing but a light Higgs is observed at the LHC, suggesting that the Standard Model is unmodified up to scales far above the weak scale, Higgs physics can yield surprises of fundamental...
The Effective Field Theory of Inflation (2007)
Cheung, Clifford, Creminelli, Paolo, Fitzpatrick, A. Liam, Kaplan, Jared, Senatore, Leonardo
We study the effective field theory of inflation, i.e. the most general theory describing the fluctuations around a quasi de Sitter background, in the case of single field models. The scalar mode can...
On the consistency relation of the 3-point function in single field inflation (2007)
Cheung, Clifford, Fitzpatrick, A. Liam, Kaplan, Jared, Senatore, Leonardo
The consistency relation for the 3-point function of the CMB is a very powerful observational signature which is believed to be true for every inflationary model in which there is only one dynamical...
A smooth bouncing cosmology with scale invariant spectrum (2007)
Creminelli, Paolo, Senatore, Leonardo
We present a bouncing cosmology which evolves from the contracting to the expanding phase in a smooth way, without developing instabilities or pathologies and remaining in the regime of validity of...
Limits on f_NL parameters from WMAP 3yr data (2006)
Creminelli, Paolo, Senatore, Leonardo, Zaldarriaga, Matias, Tegmark, Max
We analyze the 3-year WMAP data and look for a deviation from Gaussianity in the form of a 3-point function that has either of the two theoretically motivated shapes: local and equilateral. There is...
Creminelli, Paolo, Luty, Markus A., Nicolis, Alberto, Senatore, Leonardo
We present a consistent effective theory that violates the null energy condition (NEC) without developing any instabilities or other pathological features. The model is the ghost condensate with the...
Estimators for local non-Gaussianities (2006)
Creminelli, Paolo, Senatore, Leonardo, Zaldarriaga, Matias
We study the Likelihood function of data given f_NL for the so-called local type of non-Gaussianity. In this case the curvature perturbation is a non-linear function, local in real space, of a...
Applications of particle physics to the early universe (2006)
Thesis (Ph. D.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Physics, 2006.
Applications of particle physics to the early universe / (2006)
In this thesis, I show some of the results of my research work in the field at the crossing between Cosmology and Particle Physics. The Cosmology of several models of the Physics Beyond the Standard...
Applications of particle physics to the early universe (2006)
Thesis (Ph. D.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Physics, 2006.
The Minimal Model for Dark Matter and Unification (2005)
Mahbubani, Rakhi, Senatore, Leonardo
Gauge coupling unification and the success of TeV-scale weakly interacting dark matter are usually taken as evidence of low energy supersymmetry (SUSY). However, if we assume that the tuning of the...
Limits on non-Gaussianities from WMAP data (2005)
Creminelli, Paolo, Nicolis, Alberto, Senatore, Leonardo, Tegmark, Max, Zaldarriaga, Matias
We develop a method to constrain the level of non-Gaussianity of density perturbations when the 3-point function is of the "equilateral" type. Departures from Gaussianity of this form are produced by...
Hierarchy from Baryogenesis (2005)
We study a recently proposed mechanism to solve the hierarchy problem in the context of the landscape, where the solution of the hierarchy problem is connected to the requirement of having baryons in...
How heavy can the Fermions in Split Susy be? A study on Gravitino and Extradimensional LSP (2004)
In recently introduced Split Susy theories, in which the scale of Susy breaking is very high, the requirement that the relic abundance of the Lightest SuperPartner (LSP) provides the Dark Matter of...
Isocurvature constraints on gravitationally produced superheavy dark matter (2004)
Chung, Daniel J. H., Kolb, Edward W., Riotto, Antonio, Senatore, Leonardo
We show that the isocurvature perturbations imply that the gravitationally produced superheavy dark matter must have masses larger than few times the Hubble expansion rate at the end of inflation....
In a ghost inflationary scenario, we study the observational consequences of a tilt in the potential of the ghost condensate. We show how the presence of a tilt tends to make contact between the...