Year: 2006
Type: article
Abstract: We investigate non-Gaussianity in general multiple-field inflation using the formalism we developed in earlier papers. We use a perturbative expansion of the nonlinear equations to calculate the three-point correlator of the curvature perturbation analytically. We derive a general expression that involves only a time integral over background and linear perturbation quantities. We work out this expression explicitly for the two-field slow-roll case, and find that non-Gaussianity can be orders of magnitude larger than in the single-field case. In particular, the bispectrum divided by the square of the power spectrum can easily be of $\mathcal{O}(1--10)$, depending on the model. Our result also shows the explicit momentum dependence of the bispectrum. This conclusion of large non-Gaussianity is confirmed in a semianalytic investigation of a simple quadratic two-field model.
Institutions: Utrecht University, University of Cambridge
Language: English
Subfield: Astronomy and Astrophysics
Field: Physics and Astronomy
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W1973871771