Vacuum polarization by topological defects in de Sitter spacetime

TL;DR

This paper studies how topological defects in de Sitter spacetime influence vacuum polarization effects of a massive scalar field, focusing on the vacuum expectation value of the field square.

Contribution

It provides a calculation of vacuum polarization effects caused by topological defects in de Sitter space, highlighting the influence of defects on quantum field behavior.

Findings

Topological defects alter the vacuum expectation value of the scalar field.

The presence of defects induces measurable changes in vacuum polarization.

Results enhance understanding of quantum effects in curved spacetimes with defects.

Abstract

In this paper we investigate the vacuum polarization effects associated with a massive quantum scalar field in de Sitter spacetime in the presence of gravitational topological defects. Specifically we calculate the vacuum expectation value of the field square, $<\Phi^2>$. Because this investigation has been developed in a pure de Sitter space, here we are mainly interested on the effects induced by the presence of the defects.