Astronomy and Astrophysics – Astrophysics – General Relativity and Quantum Cosmology
Scientific paper
2011-10-14
Phys. Rev. D 85, 023514 (2012)
Astronomy and Astrophysics
Astrophysics
General Relativity and Quantum Cosmology
25 pages, 6 figures. Minor corrections and clarifications added. Final section on spatial variations removed so that the paper
Scientific paper
10.1103/PhysRevD.85.023514
In this paper, we formulate a generalization of the simple Bekenstein-Sandvik-Barrow-Magueijo (BSBM) theory of varying alpha by allowing the coupling constant, \omega, for the corresponding scalar field \psi\ to depend on \psi. We focus on the situation where \omega\ is exponential in \psi\ and find the late-time behaviours that occur in matter-dominated and dark-energy dominated cosmologies. We also consider the situation when the background expansion scale factor of the universe evolves in proportion to an arbitrary power of the cosmic time. We find the conditions under which the fine structure `constant' increases with time, as in the BSBM theory, and establish a cosmic no-hair behaviour for accelerating universes. We also find the conditions under which the fine structure `constant' can decrease with time and compare the whole family of models with astronomical data from quasar absorption spectra.
Barrow John D.
Lip Sean Z. W.
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