Year: 2025
Type: article
Abstract: A recent analysis of the false-vacuum decay in non-perturbative regimes is here extended in the presence of Einstein gravity, computing the corresponding effective potential and decay rate. We consider a [Formula: see text] scalar field theory and we observe that, in comparison to the usual perturbative decay rate, the higher the coupling [Formula: see text], the greater the decay probability. We evaluate the running of the self-interaction coupling and obtain a weakly coupled theory at lower energies, proving that Einstein gravity grants an even more reliable weak coupling approximation with the universe cooling down. We also provide an extended study of a non-minimal coupling [Formula: see text] of the scalar field with gravity showing how this term makes the false-vacuum decay more difficult. Minima can also disappear at large coupling [Formula: see text]. We discuss possible applications of these results to cosmological phase transitions, gravitational-wave astronomy, and condensed matter systems.
Authors: Gianluca Calcagni, Marco Frasca, Anish Ghoshal
Institutions: Instituto de Estructura de la Materia, University of Warsaw
Language: English
Subfield: Astronomy and Astrophysics
Field: Physics and Astronomy
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W4416440191