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Inflationary Universe
Recent versions of the inflationary scenario
describe the universe as a self-generating fractal
that sprouts other inflationary universes
by Andrei Linde
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f my colleagues and I are right, we the big bang theory maintains that the ue, which is about 10 Ð29 gram per cubic
may soon be saying good-bye to the universe was born about 15 billion years centimeter.
idea that our universe was a single ago from a cosmological singularityÑa This and other puzzles forced phys-
Þreball created in the big bang. We are state in which the temperature and den- icists to look more attentively at the
exploring a new theory based on a 15- sity are inÞnitely high. Of course, one basic assumptions underlying the stan-
year-old notion that the universe went cannot really speak in physical terms dard cosmological theory. And we
through a stage of inßation. During that about these quantities as being inÞnite. found many to be highly suspicious. I
time, the theory holds, the cosmos be- One usually assumes that the current will review six of the most diÛcult. The
came exponentially large within an in- laws of physics did not apply then. They Þrst, and main, problem is the very ex-
Þnitesimal fraction of a second. At the took hold only after the density of the istence of the big bang. One may won-
end of this period, the universe contin- universe dropped below the so-called der, What came before? If space-time
ued its evolution according to the big Planck density, which equals about 1094 did not exist then, how could everything
bang model. As workers reÞned this grams per cubic centimeter. appear from nothing? What arose Þrst :
inßationary scenario, they uncovered As the universe expanded, it gradual- the universe or the laws determining
some surprising consequences. One of ly cooled. Remnants of the primordial its evolution? Explaining this initial sin-
them constitutes a fundamental change cosmic Þre still surround us in the form gularityÑwhere and when it all beganÑ
in how the cosmos is seen. Recent ver- of the microwave background radiation. still remains the most intractable prob-
sions of inßationary theory assert that This radiation indicates that the tem- lem of modern cosmology.
instead of being an expanding ball of perature of the universe has dropped to A second trouble spot is the ßatness
Þre the universe is a huge, growing frac- 2.7 kelvins. The 1965 discovery of this of space. General relativity suggests that
tal. It consists of many inßating balls background radiation by Arno A. Penzi- space may be very curved, with a typical
that produce new balls, which in turn as and Robert W. Wilson of Bell Labora- radius on the order of the Planck length,
produce more balls, ad inÞnitum. tories proved to be the crucial evidence or 10 Ð33 centimeter. We see, however,
Cosmologists did not arbitrarily in- in establishing the big bang theory as that our universe is just about ßat on a
vent this rather peculiar vision of the the preeminent theory of cosmology. scale of 10 28 centimeters, the radius of
universe. Several workers, Þrst in Rus- The big bang theory also explained the the observable part of the universe. This
sia and later in the U.S., proposed the abundances of hydrogen, helium and result of our observation diÝers from
inßationary hypothesis that is the basis other elements in the universe. theoretical expectations by more than
of its foundation. We did so to solve 60 orders of magnitude.
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some of the complications left by the s investigators developed the the- A similar discrepancy between theo-
old big bang idea. In its standard form, ory, they uncovered complicat- ry and observations concerns the size
- ed problems. For example, the of the universe. Cosmological examina-
standard big bang theory, coupled with tions show that our part of the universe
the modern theory of elementary parti- contains at least 10 88 elementary parti-
ANDREI LINDE is one of the originators cles, predicts the existence of many su- cles. But why is the universe so big? If
of inßationary theory. After graduating perheavy particles carrying magnetic one takes a universe of a typical initial
from Moscow University, he received his
chargeÑthat is, objects that have only size given by the Planck length and a
Ph.D. at the P. N. Lebedev Physics Insti-
tute in Moscow, where he began probing one magnetic pole. These magnetic typical initial density equal to the Planck
the connections between particle physics monopoles would have a typical mass density, then, using the standard big
and cosmology. He became a professor 10 16 times that of the proton, or about bang theory, one can calculate how
of physics at Stanford University in 0.00001 milligram. According to the many elementary particles such a uni-
1990. He lives at Stanford with his wife, standard big bang theory, monopoles verse might encompass. The answer is
Renata Kallosh (also a professor of phys- should have emerged very early in the rather unexpected: the entire universe
ics at Stanford), and his sons, Dmitri and
evolution of the universe and should should only be large enough to accom-
Alex. Besides theorizing about the birth
of the cosmos, Linde also dabbles in
now be as abundant as protons. In that modate just one elementary particleÑ
stage stunts such as sleight-of-hand, ac- case, the mean density of matter in the or at most 10 of them. It would be un-
robatics and hypnosis. universe would be about 15 orders of able to house even a single reader of Sci-
magnitude greater than its present val- entiÞc American, who consists of about
10 29 elementary particles. Obviously, universe incorporates important devia- compactiÞcation stopped with four di-
something is wrong with this theory. tions from homogeneity, namely, stars, mensions, not two or Þve.
The fourth problem deals with the galaxies and other agglomerations of Moreover, the manner in which the
timing of the expansion. In its standard matter. Hence, we must explain why the other dimensions become rolled up is
form, the big bang theory assumes that universe is so uniform on large scales signiÞcant, for it determines the values
all parts of the universe began expand- and at the same time suggest some of the constants of nature and the mass-
ing simultaneously. But how could all mechanism that produces galaxies. es of particles. In some theories, com-
the diÝerent parts of the universe syn- Finally, there is what I call the unique- pactiÞcation can occur in billions of dif-
chronize the beginning of their expan- ness problem. Albert Einstein captured ferent ways. A few years ago it would
sion? Who gave the command? its essence when he said : ÒWhat really have seemed rather meaningless to ask
Fifth, there is the question about the interests me is whether God had any why space-time has four dimensions,
distribution of matter in the universe. choice in the creation of the world.Ó In- why the gravitational constant is so
On the very large scale, matter has deed, slight changes in the physical con- small or why the proton is almost 2,000
spread out with remarkable uniformity. stants of nature could have made the times heavier than the electron. Now
Across more than 10 billion light-years, universe unfold in a completely diÝer- developments in elementary particle
its distribution departs from perfect ent manner. For example, many popu- physics make answering these ques-
homogeneity by less than one part in lar theories of elementary particles as- tions crucial to understanding the con-
10,000. For a long time, nobody had any sume that space-time originally had struction of our world.
idea why the universe was so homoge- considerably more than four dimen- All these problems (and others I have
neous. But those who do not have ideas sions (three spatial and one temporal ). not mentioned ) are extremely perplex-
sometimes have principles. One of the In order to square theoretical calcula- ing. That is why it is encouraging that
cornerstones of the standard cosmolo- tions with the physical world in which many of these puzzles can be resolved
gy was the Òcosmological principle,Ó we live, these models state that the ex- in the context of the theory of the self-
which asserts that the universe must be tra dimensions have been Òcompacti- reproducing, inßationary universe.
homogeneous. This assumption, how- Þed,Ó or shrunk to a small size and The basic features of the inßationary
ever, does not help much, because the tucked away. But one may wonder why scenario are rooted in the physics of el-
ementary particles. So I would like to pands and becomes Þlled by various One way to imagine the situation is
take you on a brief excursion into this scalar Þelds. The process by which the to picture a ball rolling down the side
realmÑin particular, to the uniÞed the- fundamental forces separate is called of a large bowl [see upper illustration on
ory of weak and electromagnetic inter- symmetry breaking. The particular val- page 54 ]. The bottom of the bowl rep-
actions. Both these forces exert them- ue of the scalar Þeld that appears in the resents the energy minimum. The posi-
selves through particles. Photons medi- universe is determined by the position tion of the ball corresponds to the val-
ate the electromagnetic force; the W and of the minimum of its potential energy. ue of the scalar Þeld. Of course, the
Z particles are responsible for the weak equations describing the motion of the
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force. But whereas photons are mass- calar Þelds play a crucial role in scalar Þeld in an expanding universe
less, the W and Z particles are extreme- cosmology as well as in particle are somewhat more complicated than
ly heavy. To unify the weak and electro- physics. They provide the mecha- the equations for the ball in an empty
magnetic interactions despite the obvi- nism that generates the rapid inßation bowl. They contain an extra term corre-
ous diÝerences between photons and of the universe. Indeed, according to sponding to friction, or viscosity. This
the W and Z particles, physicists intro- general relativity, the universe expands friction is akin to having molasses in
duced so-called scalar Þelds. at a rate (approximately) proportional the bowl. The viscosity of this liquid
Although scalar Þelds are not the to the square root of its density. If the depends on the energy of the Þeld: the
stuÝ of everyday life, a familiar ana- universe were Þlled by ordinary matter, higher the ball in the bowl is, the thick-
logue exists. That is the electrostatic then the density would rapidly decrease er the liquid will be. Therefore, if the
potentialÑthe voltage in a circuit is an as the universe expanded. Therefore, Þeld initially was very large, the energy
example. Electrical Þelds appear only if the expansion of the universe would dropped extremely slowly.
this potential is uneven, as it is between rapidly slow down as its density de- The sluggishness of the energy drop
the poles of a battery or if the potential creased. But because of the equivalence in the scalar Þeld has a crucial implica-
changes in time. If the entire universe of mass and energy established by Ein- tion in the expansion rate. The decline
had the same electrostatic potential, stein, the potential energy of the scalar was so gradual that the potential ener-
say, 110 volts, then nobody would no- Þeld also contributes to the expansion. gy of the scalar Þeld remained almost
tice it; the potential would seem to be In certain cases, this energy decreases constant as the universe expanded. This
just another vacuum state. Similarly, a much more slowly than does the densi- behavior contrasts sharply with that of
constant scalar Þeld looks like a vacu- ty of ordinary matter. ordinary matter, whose density rapidly
um: we do not see it even if we are sur- The persistence of this energy may decreases in an expanding universe.
rounded by it. lead to a stage of extremely rapid ex- Thanks to the large energy of the scalar
These scalar Þelds Þll the universe pansion, or inßation, of the universe. Þeld, the universe continued to expand
and mark their presence by affecting This possibility emerges even if one at a speed much greater than that pre-
properties of elementary particles. If a considers the very simplest version of dicted by preinßation cosmological the-
scalar Þeld interacts with the W and Z the theory of a scalar Þeld. In this ver- ories. The size of the universe in this
particles, they become heavy. Particles sion the potential energy reaches a min- regime grew exponentially.
that do not interact with the scalar Þeld, imum at the point where the scalar Þeld This stage of self-sustained, exponen-
such as photons, remain light. vanishes. In this case, the larger the sca- tially rapid inßation did not last long.
To describe elementary particle phys- lar Þeld, the greater the potential energy. Its duration could have been as short
ics, therefore, physicists begin with a According to EinsteinÕs theory of gravi- as 10 Ð35 second. Once the energy of the
theory in which all particles initially are ty, the energy of the scalar Þeld must Þeld declined, the viscosity nearly dis-
light and in which no fundamental dif- have caused the universe to expand very appeared, and inßation ended. Like the
ference between weak and electromag- rapidly. The expansion slowed down ball as it reaches the bottom of the
netic interactions exists. This diÝerence when the scalar Þeld reached the mini- bowl, the scalar Þeld began to oscillate
arises only later, when the universe ex- mum of its potential energy. near the minimum of its potential ener-
gy. As the scalar Þeld oscillated, it lost more than enough to produce every- common during phase transitions; for
energy, giving it up in the form of ele- thing we see now. example, water under the right circum-
mentary particles. These particles in- stances remains liquid below zero de-
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teracted with one another and eventu- nßationary theory did not always grees Celsius. Of course, supercooled
ally settled down to some equilibrium look so conceptually simple. At- water eventually freezes. That event
temperature. From this time on, the tempts to obtain the stage of expo- would correspond to the end of the in-
standard big bang theory can describe nential expansion of the universe have ßationary period. The idea to use super-
the evolution of the universe. a long history. Unfortunately, because cooling for solving many problems of
The main diÝerence between inßa- of political barriers, this history is only the big bang theory was exceptionally
tionary theory and the old cosmology partially known to American readers. attractive. Unfortunately, as Guth him-
becomes clear when one calculates the The first realistic version of the inßa- self pointed out, the postinßation uni-
size of the universe at the end of inßa- tionary theory came in 1979 from Alexei verse of his scenario becomes extremely
tion. Even if the universe at the begin- A. Starobinsky of the L. D. Landau In- inhomogeneous. After investigating his
ning of inßation was as small as 10 Ð33 stitute of Theoretical Physics in Moscow. model for a year, he finally renounced
centimeter, after 10 Ð35 second of inßa- The Starobinsky model created a sen- it in a paper he co-authored with Erick J.
tion this domain acquires an unbeliev- sation among Russian astrophysicists, Weinberg of Columbia University.
able size. According to some inßation- and for two years it remained the main In 1982 I introduced the so-called new
ary models, this size in centimeters can topic of discussion at all conferences inßationary universe scenario, which
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equal 10 10 Ñthat is, a 1 followed by on cosmology in the Soviet Union. His Andreas Albrecht and Paul J. Steinhardt
a trillion zeros. These numbers depend model, however, was rather complicat- of the University of Pennsylvania also
on the models used, but in most ver- ed (it was based on the theory of anom- later discovered [see ÒThe Inßationary
sions this size is many orders of magni- alies in quantum gravity) and did not Universe,Ó by Alan H. Guth and Paul J.
tude greater than the size of the observ- say much about how inßation could ac- Steinhardt; SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN, May
able universe, or 10 28 centimeters. tually start. 1984]. This scenario shrugged oÝ the
This tremendous spurt immediately In 1981 Alan H. Guth of the Massa- main problems of GuthÕs model. But it
solves most of the problems of the old chusetts Institute of Technology sug- was still rather complicated and not
cosmological theory. Our universe ap- gested that the hot universe at some very realistic.
pears smooth and uniform because all intermediate stage could expand expo- Only a year later did I realize that in-
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inhomogeneities were stretched 10 10 nentially. His model derived from a the- ßation is a naturally emerging feature in
times. The density of primordial mono- ory that interpreted the development of many theories of elementary particles,
poles and other undesirable ÒdefectsÓ the early universe as a series of phase including the simplest model of the
becomes exponentially diluted. (Recent- transitions. This theory was proposed scalar field discussed above. There is no
ly we have found that monopoles may in 1972 by David A. Kirzhnits and me need for quantum gravity eÝects, phase
inßate themselves and thus eÝectively at the P. N. Lebedev Physics Institute in transitions, supercooling or even the
push themselves out of the observable Moscow. According to this idea, as the standard assumption that the universe
universe.) The universe has become so universe expanded and cooled, it con- originally was hot. One just considers
large that we can now see just a tiny densed into diÝerent forms. Water va- all possible kinds and values of scalar
fraction of it. That is why, just like a por undergoes such phase transitions. Þelds in the early universe and then
small area on a surface of a huge inßat- As it becomes cooler, the vapor con- checks to see if any of them leads to
ed balloon, our part looks ßat. That is denses into water, which, if cooling con- inßation. Those places where inßation
why we do not need to demand that all tinues, becomes ice. does not occur remain small. Those do-
parts of the universe began expanding GuthÕs idea called for inßation to oc- mains where inßation takes place be-
simultaneously. One domain of a small- cur when the universe was in an unsta- come exponentially large and dominate
est possible size of 10 Ð33 centimeter is ble, supercooled state. Supercooling is the total volume of the universe. Be-
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n addition to explaining many fea-
tures of our world, inßationary the-
ory makes several important and
testable predictions. First, inßation pre-
dicts that the universe should be ex-
tremely ßat. Flatness of the universe
can be experimentally veriÞed, because
the density of a ßat universe is related
in a simple way to the speed of its ex-
pansion. So far observational data are
consistent with this prediction.
Another testable prediction is related
to density perturbations produced dur-
ing inßation. These density perturba-
tions aÝect the distribution of matter
in the universe. Furthermore, they may
be accompanied by gravitational waves.
Both density perturbations and gravita-
tional waves make their imprint on the
microwave background radiation. They
render the temperature of this radia-
tion slightly diÝerent in various places
in the sky. This nonuniformity is exact-
ly what was found two years ago by the
Cosmic Background Explorer (COBE ) sat-
ellite, a Þnding later conÞrmed by sev-
eral other experiments.
Although the COBE results agree with
the predictions of inßation, it would be
premature to claim that COBE has con-
An ÒexplosionÓ of the scalar Þeld Þrmed the inßationary theory. But it is
certainly true that the results obtained
by the satellite at their current level of
and saw for the first time all these growing mountains that represent inflation- precision could have deÞnitively dis-
ary domains. We were able to fly between them and to enjoy a view of our uni- proved most inßationary models, and
verse at the first moments of creation. We looked at the shining screen, and we it did not happen. At present, no other
were happy—we saw that the universe is good! But our work did not last long. theory can simultaneously explain why
On the eighth day we returned the computer, and the machine’s gigabyte hard the universe is so homogeneous and
drive crashed, taking with it the universe that we had created. still predict the Òripples in spaceÓ dis-
Now we continue our studies using different methods (and a different Silicon covered by COBE.
Graphics computer). But one can play an even more interesting game. Instead Nevertheless, we should keep an open
of watching the universe at the screen of a computer, one may try to create the mind. The possibility exists that some
universe in a laboratory. Such a notion is highly speculative, to say the least. But new observational data may contradict
some people (including Alan H. Guth and me) do not want to discard this possi- inßationary cosmology. For example, if
bility completely out of hand. One would have to compress some matter in observations tell us that the density of
such a way as to allow quantum fluctuations to trigger inflation. Simple esti- the universe is considerably diÝerent
mates in the context of the chaotic inflation scenario suggest that less than one from the critical density, which corre-
milligram of matter may initiate an eternal, self-reproducing universe. sponds to a ßat universe, inßationary
We still do not know whether this process is possible. The theory of quantum cosmology will face a real challenge. ( It
fluctuations that could lead to a new universe is extremely complicated. And may be possible to resolve this problem
even if it is possible to “bake’’ new universes, what shall we do with them? Can if it appears, but it is fairly complex.)
we send any message to their inhabitants, who would perceive their micro- Another complication has a purely
scopic universe to be as big as we see ours? Is it conceivable that our own uni- theoretical origin. Inßationary models
verse was created by a physicist-hacker? Someday we may find the answers. are based on the theory of elementary
particles, and this theory by itself is not
H
should certainly continue the search for of new models includes extended in- ere we come to the most inter-
alternative cosmological theories. Many ßation, natural inßation, hybrid inßa- esting part of our story, to the
cosmologists, however, believe inßation, tion and many others. Each model has theory of an eternally existing,
self-reproducing inßationary universe.
This theory is rather general, but it looks
SPACE-TIME FOAM especially promising and leads to the
most dramatic consequences in the con-
text of the chaotic inßation scenario.
PLANCK DENSITY
As I already mentioned, one can visu-
LARGE
alize quantum ßuctuations of the scalar
QUANTUM Þeld in an inßationary universe as
FLUCTUATIONS waves. They Þrst moved in all possible
POTENTIAL ENERGY
TIME
TIME
In thinking about the process of self-
reproduction of the universe, one can-
not avoid drawing analogies, however
superÞcial they may be. One may won-
der, Is not this process similar to what
happens with all of us? Some time ago
we were born. Eventually we will die,
and the entire world of our thoughts,
feelings and memories will disappear.
But there were those who lived before
us, there will be those who will live after,
and humanity as a whole, if it is clever
enough, may live for a long time.
Inßationary theory suggests that a SELF-REPRODUCING COSMOS appears as an extended branching of inßationary
similar process may occur with the uni- bubbles. Changes in color represent ÒmutationsÓ in the laws of physics from par-
verse. One can draw some optimism ent universes. The properties of space in each bubble do not depend on the time
from knowing that even if our civiliza- when the bubble formed. In this sense, the universe as a whole may be stationary,
tion dies, there will be other places in the even though the interior of each bubble is described by the big bang theory.
universe where life will emerge again
and again, in all its possible forms.
corresponds to alternative laws of par- geneous, expanding and stationary. Our
C
ould matters become even more ticle interactions. In some inßationary cosmic home grows, ßuctuates and eter-
curious? The answer is yes. Until models, quantum ßuctuations are so nally reproduces itself in all possible
now, we have considered the strong that even the number of dimen- forms, as if adjusting itself for all pos-
simplest inßationary model with only sions of space and time can change. sible types of life that it can support.
one scalar Þeld, which has only one If this model is correct, then physics Some parts of the new theory, we
minimum of its potential energy. Mean- alone cannot provide a complete expla- hope, will stay with us for years to
while realistic models of elementary nation for all properties of our allot- come. Many others will have to be con-
particles propound many kinds of sca- ment of the universe. The same physi- siderably modiÞed to Þt with new ob-
lar Þelds. For example, in the uniÞed cal theory may yield large parts of the servational data and with the ever
theories of weak, strong and electro- universe that have diverse properties. changing theory of elementary parti-
magnetic interactions, at least two oth- According to this scenario, we Þnd our- cles. It seems, however, that the past
er scalar Þelds exist. The potential ener- selves inside a four-dimensional domain 15 years of development of cosmology
gy of these scalar Þelds may have sev- with our kind of physical laws, not be- have irreversibly changed our under-
eral diÝerent minima. This condition cause domains with diÝerent dimen- standing of the structure and fate of
means that the same theory may have sionality and with alternative proper- our universe and of our own place in it.
diÝerent Òvacuum states,Ó correspond- ties are impossible or improbable but
ing to diÝerent types of symmetry simply because our kind of life cannot
breaking between fundamental interac- exist in other domains. FURTHER READING
tions and, as a result, to diÝerent laws Does this mean that understanding PARTICLE PHYSICS AND INFLATIONARY
of low-energy physics. ( Interactions of all the properties of our region of the COSMOLOGY. Andrei Linde in Physics
particles at extremely large energies do universe will require, besides a knowl- Today, Vol. 40, No. 9, pages 61Ð68; Sep-
not depend on symmetry breaking.) edge of physics, a deep investigation of tember 1987.
Such complexities in the scalar Þeld our own nature, perhaps even includ- THE FRACTAL DIMENSION OF THE INFLA-
mean that after inßation the universe ing the nature of our consciousness? TIONARY UNIVERSE. M. Aryal and A. Vil-
enkin in Physics Letters B, Vol. 199, No.
may become divided into exponentially This conclusion would certainly be one
3, pages 351Ð357; December 24, 1987.
large domains that have diÝerent laws of the most unexpected that one could INFLATION AND QUANTUM COSMOLOGY.
of low-energy physics. Note that this di- draw from the recent developments in Andrei Linde. Academic Press, 1990.
vision occurs even if the entire universe inßationary cosmology. PARTICLE PHYSICS AND INFLATIONARY
originally began in the same state, cor- The evolution of inßationary theory COSMOLOGY. Andrei Linde. Harwood
responding to one particular minimum has given rise to a completely new cos- Academic Publishers, 1990.
of potential energy. Indeed, large quan- mological paradigm, which diÝers con- FROM THE BIG BANG THEORY TO THE
tum ßuctuations can cause scalar Þelds siderably from the old big bang theory THEORY OF A STATIONARY UNIVERSE. A.
Linde, D. Linde and A. Mezhlumian in
to jump out of their minima. That is, and even from the Þrst versions of the Physical Review D, Vol. 49, No. 4, pages
they jiggle some of the balls out of their inßationary scenario. In it the universe 1783Ð1826; February 1994.
bowls and into other ones. Each bowl appears to be both chaotic and homo-