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arXiv · 0903.5419

Symmetry breaking in (gravitating) scalar field models describing interacting boson stars and Q-balls

Yves Brihaye·Thierry Caebergs·Betti Hartmann·Momchil Minkov
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Abstract

We investigate the properties of interacting Q-balls and boson stars that sit on top of each other in great detail. The model that describes these solutions is essentially a (gravitating) two-scalar field model where both scalar fields are complex. We construct interacting Q-balls or boson stars with arbitrarily small charges but finite mass. We observe that in the interacting case - where the interaction can be either due to the potential or due to gravity - two types of solutions exist for equal frequencies: one for which the two scalar fields are equal, but also one for which the two scalar fields differ. This constitutes a symmetry breaking in the model. While for Q-balls asymmetric solutions have always corresponding symmetric solutions and are thus likely unstable to decay to symmetric solutions with lower energy, there exists a parameter regime for interacting boson stars, where only asymmetric solutions exist. We present the domain of existence for two interacting non-rotating solutions as well as for solutions describing the interaction between rotating and non-rotating Q-balls and boson stars, respectively.

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Yves Brihaye, Thierry Caebergs, Betti Hartmann, Momchil Minkov. 2009-05-27. Symmetry breaking in (gravitating) scalar field models describing interacting boson stars and Q-balls. https://doi.org/10.1103/physrevd.80.064014

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