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arXiv · 2402.09863

Double-well instantons in finite volume

Wen-Yuan Ai·Jean Alexandre·Matthias Carosi·Bjorn Garbrecht·Silvia Pla
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Abstract

Assuming a toroidal space with finite volume, we derive analytically the full one-loop vacuum energy for a scalar field tunnelling between two degenerate vacua, taking into account discrete momentum. The Casimir energy is computed for an arbitrary number of dimensions using the Abel-Plana formula, while the one-loop instanton functional determinant is evaluated using the Green's functions for the fluctuation operators. The resulting energetic properties are non-trivial: both the Casimir effect and tunnelling contribute to the Null Energy Condition violation, arising from a non-extensive true vacuum energy. We discuss the relevance of this mechanism to induce a cosmic bounce, requiring no modified gravity or exotic matter.

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Wen-Yuan Ai, Jean Alexandre, Matthias Carosi, Bjorn Garbrecht, Silvia Pla. 2024-02-15. Double-well instantons in finite volume. https://doi.org/10.1007/jhep05(2024)099

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