Inflation and the cosmological constant

TL;DR

This paper explores a model where two massless vector fields dynamically cancel the cosmological constant, and under specific initial conditions, can also produce an inflationary phase in the early universe.

Contribution

It demonstrates that a compensation mechanism for the cosmological constant can still allow for early universe inflation with particular initial boundary conditions.

Findings

Certain initial boundary conditions enable inflation despite the compensation mechanism.

The vector fields can cancel the cosmological constant while supporting inflation.

The model provides a potential solution to the cosmological constant problem compatible with inflation.

Abstract

A particular compensation-type solution of the main cosmological constant problem has been proposed recently, with two massless vector fields dynamically canceling an arbitrary cosmological constant \Lambda. The naive expectation is that such a compensation mechanism does not allow for the existence of an inflationary phase in the very early Universe. However, it is shown that certain initial boundary conditions on the vector fields can in fact give rise to an inflationary phase.