arXiv subjects

Christopher Gerlach

Publications and source records attributed to Christopher Gerlach.

5 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

Audible Axion Magnetogenesis: Linking Intergalactic Magnetic Fields and Gravitational Waves

Identifying dark matter candidates that simultaneously generate multiple observable cosmological signatures is a key goal in connecting particle physics with upcoming observations. Axion-like particles coupled to the Standard Model photon offer a promising framework. In the trapped misalignment mechanism, the onset of axion oscillations is delayed, inducing a period of supercooling in the early Universe. This can lead to exponential production of photon quanta via a tachyonic instability, generating observable gravitational wave signatures. Simultaneously, reheating of the Standard Model plasma produces strong, helical magnetic fields on intergalactic scales. The parameter space most promising for gravitational wave detection yields magnetic field strengths that exceed lower bounds from blazar observations.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2025

Superhorizon Isocurvature as a Window into Dark Matter Production

In the presence of primordial isocurvature perturbations, for example in a separate dark radiation sector, the superhorizon evolution of curvature perturbations becomes nontrivial. If the dark sector is radiation-like and constitutes a significant fraction of the energy density, its isocurvature can imply isocurvature in the inflaton sector even without direct interactions between the sectors. In this article, we revisit superhorizon curvature and isocurvature evolution in the long-wavelength limit systematically, drawing a simple picture of how to understand the nature of these fluctuations from first principles and without brute-force cosmic perturbation theory. We show how the described setup is able to source isocurvature in simple models of dark matter such as freeze-in and freeze-out and demonstrate that future measurements of matter and neutrino isocurvature can potentially discriminate between these two mechanisms.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2025

Closing the Mass Window for Stupendously Large Black Holes

We show that primordial black holes (PBHs) in the $\textit{Stupendously Large Black Hole}$ mass range ($M \gtrsim 10^{11}\,M_\odot$) produce isocurvature perturbations exceeding current $\textit{Planck}$ Cosmic Microwave Background limits, thereby excluding them as a significant dark matter component.

astro-ph.CO↗

arXiv2025

Generalized neutrino isocurvature

Searches for neutrino isocurvature usually constrain a specific linear combination of isocurvature perturbations. In this work, we discuss realistic cosmological scenarios giving rise to neutrino isocurvature. We show that in general both, neutrino and matter isocurvature perturbations are generated, whose ratio we parameterize by a newly introduced mixing angle. We obtain the first limits on this new mixing angle from PLANCK data, and discuss novel insights into the early Universe that could be provided by future measurements.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2025

Supercooled Audible Axions

In the audible axion mechanism, axion-like particles source primordial gravitational waves via their coupling to a dark Abelian gauge field. The original setup, however, relies on a large axion decay constant and coupling to produce sizable signals. In this article, we show that delaying the onset of axion oscillations opens up the testable parameter space and reduces the required coupling to $\alpha \gtrsim 1$. Furthermore, we investigate the emission of gravitational waves via the axion coupling to the Standard Model photon in the presence of Schwinger pair production, generating a strong signal in the $\mu$Hz or ultra-high frequency range. Cosmological constraints and gravitational wave projections are provided for both scenarios.

hep-ph↗