Dynamical analysis of cosmological models with non-Abelian gauge vector fields

TL;DR

This paper employs a dynamical system approach to analyze cosmological models with non-Abelian SU(2) gauge vector fields, revealing how mass terms extend inflation and influence dark energy behavior, including anisotropic expansion within observational limits.

Contribution

It provides a comprehensive analysis of the parameter space for massive gauge field models, highlighting the effects of mass on inflation duration and dark energy properties.

Findings

Mass term extends inflationary period.

Mass influences dark energy equation of state.

Anisotropic expansion remains within observational bounds.

Abstract

In this paper we study some models where non-Abelian gauge vector fields endowed with a SU(2) group representation are the unique source of inflation and dark energy. These models were first introduced under the name of gaugeflation and gaugessence, respectively. Although several realizations of these models have been discussed, not all available parameters and initial conditions are known. In this work, we use a dynamical system approach to find the full parameter space of the massive version of each model. In particular, we found that the inclusion of the mass term increases the length of the inflationary period. Additionally, the mass term implies new behaviors for the equation of state of dark energy allowing to distinguish this from other prototypical models of accelerated expansion. We show that an axially symmetric gauge field can support an anisotropic accelerated expansion within the observational bounds.