Pith. sign in

REVIEW 6 cited by

A Tail of Eternal Inflation

Not yet reviewed by Pith; the record is open.

This paper has not been read by Pith yet. Machine review is queued; the pith claim, tier, and objections will appear here once it completes.

SPECIMEN: schema-true, not a live event

T0 review · schema-true

One-sentence machine reading of the paper's core claim.

pith:XXXXXXXX · record.json · timestamp

arxiv 2111.09332 v2 pith:5B2GIYQ4 submitted 2021-11-17 hep-th astro-ph.COhep-ph

A Tail of Eternal Inflation

classification hep-th astro-ph.COhep-ph
keywords inflationeternalfluctuationssitterdistributioneffectivefindhorizon
verification ladder T0 review T1 audit T2 compute T3 formal T4 reserved
0 comments
read the original abstract

Non-trivial inflaton self-interactions can yield calculable signatures of primordial non-Gaussianity that are measurable in cosmic surveys. Surprisingly, we find that the phase transition to slow-roll eternal inflation is often incalculable in the same models. Instead, this transition is sensitive to the non-Gaussian tail of the distribution of scalar fluctuations, which probes physics inside the horizon, potentially beyond the cutoff scale of the Effective Field Theory of Inflation. We demonstrate this fact directly by calculating non-Gaussian corrections to Stochastic Inflation within the framework of Soft de Sitter Effective Theory, from which we derive the associated probability distribution for the scalar fluctuations. We find parameter space consistent with current observations and weak coupling at horizon crossing in which the large fluctuations relevant for eternal inflation can only be determined by appealing to a UV completion. We also show this breakdown of the perturbative description is required for the de Sitter entropy to reflect the number of de Sitter microstates.

discussion (0)

Sign in with ORCID, Apple, or X to comment. Anyone can read and Pith papers without signing in.

Forward citations

Cited by 6 Pith papers

Reviewed papers in the Pith corpus that reference this work. Sorted by Pith novelty score.

  1. Quantum correction to the diffusion term in stochastic inflation from composite-operator matching in Soft de Sitter Effective Theory

    hep-th 2026-04 unverdicted novelty 8.0

    The two-loop correction to the diffusion coefficient in stochastic inflation is computed for the first time via composite-operator renormalisation and matching in SdSET.

  2. Stochastic inflation as an open quantum system II: open effective field theory and stochastic matching

    hep-th 2026-05 unverdicted novelty 7.0

    Constructs open EFT for stochastic inflation with stochastic RG channel, nonlocal Wilson kernels, and derived master equations matched to full theory via method-of-regions.

  3. Stochastic inflation from a non-equilibrium renormalization group

    hep-th 2026-05 unverdicted novelty 7.0

    A generalized Fokker-Planck equation for stochastic inflation is derived from a Polchinski-type renormalization group flow on the density matrix, incorporating dissipative and diffusive corrections beyond the leading order.

  4. Classical conformal invariance and superhorizon dynamics in de Sitter

    hep-th 2026-07 conditional novelty 6.5

    Standard SdSET power counting fails for classically conformal φ⁴; leading superhorizon modes must be read from the two-loop anomalous dimension of the two-point function.

  5. Stochastic inflation as an open quantum system II: open effective field theory and stochastic matching

    hep-th 2026-05 unverdicted novelty 6.0

    Develops open EFT for stochastic inflation with a distinct stochastic RG channel, derives nonlocal master equations including Fokker-Planck and Klein-Kramers forms, and demonstrates stochastic renormalization with an ...

  6. A Compact Story of Positivity in de Sitter

    hep-th 2025-08 unverdicted novelty 5.0

    Compares two methods to resolve disagreements and prove positivity of anomalous dimensions for principal series fields coupled to compact scalar operators in de Sitter space.