Published January 10, 2011 | Version v1
Journal article

PHASE TRANSITION GENERATED COSMOLOGICAL MAGNETIC FIELD AT LARGE SCALES

  • 1. McWilliams Center for Cosmology and Department of Physics, Carnegie Mellon University, 5000 Forbes Ave., Pittsburgh, PA 15213 (United States)
  • 2. Abastumani Astrophysical Observatory, Ilia State University, 2A Kazbegi Ave., Tbilisi 0160 (Georgia)
  • 3. Department of Physics, Kansas State University, 116 Cardwell Hall, Manhattan, KS 66506 (United States)

Description

We constrain a primordial magnetic field (PMF) generated during a phase transition (PT) using the big bang nucleosynthesis bound on the relativistic energy density. The amplitude of the PMF at large scales is determined by the shape of the PMF spectrum outside its maximal correlation length scale. Even if the amplitude of the PMF at 1 Mpc is small, PT-generated PMFs can leave observable signatures in the potentially detectable relic gravitational wave background if a large enough fraction (1%-10%) of the thermal energy is converted into the PMF.

Availability note (English)

Available from http://dx.doi.org/10.1088/0004-637X/726/2/78

Additional details

Identifiers

Publishing Information

Journal Title
Astrophysical Journal
Journal Volume
726
Journal Issue
2
Journal Page Range
[8 p.]
ISSN
0004-637X
CODEN
ASJOAB

INIS

Country of Publication
United States
Country of Input or Organization
International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)
INIS RN
43046108
Subject category
S79: ASTROPHYSICS, COSMOLOGY AND ASTRONOMY;
Descriptors DEI
COSMIC RADIATION; GRAVITATIONAL WAVES; MAGNETIC FIELDS; NUCLEOSYNTHESIS; PHASE TRANSFORMATIONS; UNIVERSE
Descriptors DEC
IONIZING RADIATIONS; RADIATIONS; SYNTHESIS