Axion Monodromy Inflation on Warped Throats

TL;DR

This paper constructs explicit warped throat models in string theory to realize axion monodromy inflation, linking fluxes, geometry, and dualities to achieve controlled inflationary potentials.

Contribution

It provides explicit string theory constructions of warped throats supporting axion monodromy inflation using geometric transitions and dimer diagrams.

Findings

Explicit warped throat models in type IIB and IIA string theory.

Mechanism for suppressing inflaton mass via warping.

Holographic duals described by chains of Seiberg dualities.

Abstract

Recent models of axion monodromy inflation in string theory link the inflationary potential and the moduli stabilization potential. Realistic inflationary models require mechanisms to moderately suppress the inflaton mass with respect to the moduli stabilization scale. In this paper we explore the realization of this idea using warped throats, whose redshifted infrared region supports the inflaton mode. The inflaton potential and its monodromy arise from couplings to the fluxes supporting the throat. We provide explicit realizations of such throats in type IIB with NSNS and RR 3-form field strength fluxes, and in type IIA with RR 2-form fluxes. Once embedded in a global CY, these systems would provide a mechanism to realize chaotic inflation at scales parametrically suppressed with respect to bulk physics. The construction of the throats is systematically carried out using geometric transitions in systems of D-branes at singularities, whose properties and dynamics are efficiently encoded using dimer diagrams. The holographic dual of the axion monodromy is a quasi-periodic chain of Seiberg dualities.