What the inflaton might tell us about RHIC/LHC
arXiv:0811.4401 · doi:10.1016/j.nuclphysa.2009.01.020
Abstract
Topical phenomena in high-energy physics related to collision experiments of heavy nuclei ("Little Bang") and early universe cosmology ("Big Bang") involve far-from-equilibrium dynamics described by quantum field theory. One example concerns the role of plasma instabilities for the process of thermalization in heavy-ion collisions. The reheating of the early universe after inflation may exhibit rather similar phenomena following a tachyonic or parametric resonance instability. Certain universal aspects associated to nonthermal fixed points even quantitatively agree, and considering these phenomena from a common perspective can be fruitful.
Plenary talk at SEWM08, 9 pages, 6 figures