Non-Standard Big Bang Nucleosynthesis Scenarios

K. Jedamzik Max-Planck-Institut fr Astrophysik, Karl-Schwarzschild-Str.1, D{85748 Garching u

Abstract

A brief overview of non-standard big bang nucleosynthesis (BBN) scenarios is presented. Trends and results of the light-element nucleosynthesis in BBN scenarios with small-scale or large-scale inhomogeneity, the presence of antimatter domains, stable or unstable massive neutrinos, neutrino oscillations, neutrino degeneracy, or massive decaying particles are summarized.

Introduction

Light-element nucleosynthesis during the BBN epoch below cosmic temperatures T  1MeV contributes signicantly to 4 He, 3 He and 7 Li abundances and likely, to all of the 2 H abundance observed throughout the universe. BBN is a freeze-out process from nuclear statistical equilibrium such that light-element abundance yields are sensitively dependent on the cosmic conditions during the BBN era as well as the properties of neutrinos governing the freeze-out process from weak equilibrium. Calculations of abundance yields in a standard BBN scenario are performed under the assumptions of a universe homogeneous in the baryon-to-photon ratio, with massless neutrinos and vanishing neutrino chemical potentials, and in the absence of massive decaying particles or other degrees of freedom. For reviews on the physics of standard BBN see [1]. The purpose of this short article is to summarize results and trends in theoretical calculations of non-standard BBN scenarios where one of the above assumptions in standard BBN is relaxed. This summary is in no way intended to be complete neither in discussing all possible modications to a standard BBN scenario nor in referencing the thousands of articles on non-standard BBN. I wish to apologize for including only certain key references due to the limited scope of these proceedings and for presenting my personal view of the eld of non-standard BBN. For two excellent reviews on non-standard BBN the reader is referred to [2]. The determination of observationally inferred primordial abundance constraints, which represents possibly the most important branch of the eld of big bang nucleosynthesis at present, will not be discussed here. In what follows, abundance yields in non-standard BBN will either be given in relation to abundance yields in standard BBN or in absolute values and shall be understood as indicative of approximate trends.

Non-Standard BBN
Inhomogeneity

In the following a list of non-standard BBN scenarios, their respective modications to standard BBN (hereafter; SBBN), as well as trends and results in these scenarios are given. The baryon-to-photon ratio  is the one free parameter in SBBN. Any inhomogeneity in this quantity results in modied nucleosynthesis yields which depend on the typical amplitude and spatial seperation scale of inhomogeneities. Substantial changes in the abundance yields only result when = > 1. 

a) Inhomogeneity in the Baryon-to-Photon Ratio on Small Mass Scales:

2 Fluctuations in  which may arise on sub-horizon scales at earlier cosmic epochs as, for example, possibly during a rst-order QCD transition or electroweak transition, result in a highly nonstandard BBN scenario. The nucleosynthesis in an environment with - uctuations is characterized by coupled nuclear reactions and hydrodymamic processes, such as baryon diffusion and late-time expansion of high-density regions [3]. Fluctuations in  persist down to the onset of BBN provided the mass of an individual high-density region exceeds 10 21 M . One of the main features of such scenarios is the dierential diusion of neutrons and protons leading to the existence of neutron- and proton-rich environments. The trend in inhomogeneous BBN is the overabundant production of 4 He when compared to SBBN at the same average , nevertheless, there exists parameter space where less 4 He than in SBBN is synthesized. Scenarios which don't overproduce 4 He typically have high (2 H/H)  1 2  10 4 and high (7 Li/H)  10 9 10 8 . Such BBN may agree with observational abundance constraints for fractional contributions of the baryon density to the critical density
b about 2-3 times larger than in SBBN, but only in the seemingly unlikely advent of ecient 7 Li depletion in population II stars.

b) Inhomogeneity in the Baryon-to-Photon Ratio on Large Mass Scales:

When the baryonic mass within a typical uctuation exceeds (M > 10 12 M ), baryon diu sion and hydrodymanic processes during the BBN era are of no signicance such that BBN abundance yields may be given by an average over the SBBN abundance yields of seperate regions at dierent . For non-linear uctuations exceeding the post-recombination Jeans mass M > 105 M, which may exist in primordial isocurvature baryon (PIB) models for structure  formation, early collapse of high-density () regions is anticipated [4]. The nucleosynthesis yields of collapsing regions may be excluded from the primordial abundance determination if either dark objects form or signicant early star formation in such high-density regions occurs. If only low-density regions contribute to the observable primordial abundances, characteristic average abundance yields for scenarios designed to possibly agree with observationally inferred primordial abundances are: (2 H/H)  1 3  10 4 , (7 Li/H)  5  10 10 2  10 9 , and 4 He mass fraction Yp  0:22 0:25 at a total
b < 0:2 (i.e. including possible dark obje  cts), larger than inferred from a SBBN scenario [5, 6]. One feature of such models is the prediction of fairly large intrinsic spatial variations in the primordial abundances, which may be observationally tested by (2 H/H) determinations in Lyman-limit systems [5]. These models may only agree with observationally inferred abundance limits when there are no uctuations below M < 105 M and collapse eciencies of high-density regions are large.  A distribution of small-scale matter/antimatter domains in baryon-asymmetric universes (i.e. where net  6= 0) may result from electroweak baryogenesis scenarios. If the baryon (antibaryon) mass in individual domains is > 10 21 M the BBN process in such scenarios is  characterized by dierential diusion of neutrons (antineutrons) and protons (antiprotons) which causes a preferential annihilation of antimatter on neutrons [7]. When annihilation of antimatter occurs before signicant 4 He synthesis (T > 80keV) but after weak freeze-out  (T < 1MeV) a modest to substantial reduction of Yp results. When annihilations occur mainly  after 4 He synthesis the dominant eect is signicant production of 3 He and 2 H [8], with 3 He/2 H ratios likely to be in con ict with observational constraints.

c) Matter/Antimatter Domains:

Non-standard Neutrino Properties

The BBN process may be approximated as the incorporation of all available neutrons into 4 He nuclei at a temperature T  80keV. The neutron abundance at this temperature, and hence the nal 4 He mass fraction Yp, may be increased with respect to a SBBN scenario due

3 to an increased expansion rate of the universe during the BBN era. An increased expansion rate raises the neutron-to-proton ratio (hereafter; n/p) at weak freeze-out and reduces the time for neutron decay to decrase the n/p ratio between weak freeze-out and signicant 4 He synthesis. We will refer to this eect as the \expansion rate eect". In addition, the n/p ratio at T  80keV may be either decreased or increased by introducing additional electronand/or anti-electron neutrinos into the plasma. In SBBN it is assumed that the left-handed neutrino and right-handed antineutrino seas of three massless, stable neutrino avors e ,  , and  are populated and that neutrino chemical potentials do vanish. Modications of these assumptions usually result in either the expansion rate eect or additional (anti) electron neutrinos, or both. The principal eect of such modications is to change the 4 He abundance, and to a less observationally signicant degree the abundances of other light-element isotopes.

a) Massive, long-lived  -neutrinos:

Neutrinos are considered massless and long-lived in the context of BBN for neutrino masses m < 100keV and lifetimes  > 103 s (see b), however, possible photodisintegration). A mas  sive, long-lived  -neutrino leads to the expansion rate eect since the contribution to the total energy density from the rest mass of  -neutrinos continually increases as the universe expands between weak freeze-out and 4 He synthesis, possibly even resulting in matter domination during the BBN era. BBN with massive, long-lived  neutrinos and for experimentally allowed  -masses therefore results in increased 4 He and useful limits on the allowed mass of a long-lived  -neutrino have been derived [9].

b) Massive, unstable  -neutrinos:

The eects of decaying  neutrinos on the light-element nucleosythesis [10] sensitively depend on the decay products. One distinguishes between (i) decay into sterile particles, in particular, particles which interact neither weakly with nucleons interchanging neutrons and protons nor electromagnetically with the ambient plasma (e.g.  7!  +, where  is a weakly interacting scalar), (ii) decay into sterile and electromagnetically interacting particles (e.g.  7!  + ), and (iii) decay into (anti) electron neutrinos and sterile particles (e.g.  7! e +  ) [11, 12]. For decay channel (i) and  > 1s increased 4 He mass fraction results due to the expansion  rate eect which, nevertheless, is weaker than for long-lived  -neutrinos since the energy of the (massless) decay products redshifts with the expansion of the universe. In contrast, for life times  < 1s and m > 10MeV it is possible to reduce the Yp since eectively the   distributions of only two neutrino avors are populated [13]. Decay channel (ii) would have interesting eects on BBN but is excluded by observations of supernova 1987A for  < 104 s.  For decay via channel (iii) additional (anti) electron neutrinos are injected into the plasma and their eect depends strongly on the time of injection [14]. When injected early (  1s), the net result is a reduction of Yp [15] since weak freeze-out occurs at lower temperatures. In contrast, when injected late (  102 103 s) the resulting non-thermal electron neutrinos aect a conversion of protons into neutrons, yielding higher Yp and/or higher 2 H depending on injection time. It had been suggested that a scenario with late-decaying  via channel (iii) may result in the relaxation of BBN bounds on
b by a factor up to ten [11], nevertheless, this possibility seems to be ruled out now by the current upper laboratory limit on the  -mass. For life times  > 103 s, modications of the light-element abundances after the BBN era by  photodisintegration of nuclei may result (cf. radiative decays).

c) Neutrino oscillations:

Neutrino oscillations may occur when at least one neutrino species has non-vanishing mass and the weak neutrino interaction eigenstates are not mass eigenstates of the Hamiltonian. One distinguishes between (i) avor-changing neutrino oscillations (e.g. e !  ) and (ii) active-sterile neutrino oscillations (e.g. e ! s ). Here s may be either the right-

4 handed component of a e ( ,  ) Dirac neutrino, or a fourth family of neutrinos beyond the standard model of electroweak interactions. In the absence of sterile neutrinos and neutrino degeneracy, neutrino oscillations have negligible eect on BBN due to the almost equal number densities of neutrino avors. When sterile neutrinos exist, neutrino oscillations may result into the population of the sterile neutrino distribution, increasing the energy density, and leading to the expansion rate eect. The increased Yp has been used to infer limits on the neutrino squared-mass dierence { mixing angle plane [16]. In the presence of large initial lepton number asymmetries (see neutrino degeneracy) and with sterile neutrinos, it may be possible to reduce Yp somewhat independently from the detailled initial conditions, through the dynamic generation of electron (as well as,  and  ) neutrino chemical potentials [17].

Neutrino Degeneracy

It is possible that the universe has net lepton number. Positive net cosmic lepton number manifests itself at low temperatures through an excess of neutrinos over antineutrinos. If net lepton number in either of the three families in the standard model is about ten orders of magnitude larger than the net cosmic baryon number BBN abundance yields are notabely aected. Asymmetries between the  ( ) and  ( ) number densities result in the expan  sion rate eect only, whereas asymmetries between the e and e number densities induce a  change in the weak freeze-out (n/p) ratio as well. Since the expansion rate eect leads to increased 4 He production  ( ) degeneracy may be constrained. However, one may nd combinations of  ,  , and e chemical potentials which are consistent with observational abundance constraints for
b much larger than that inferred from SBBN [18]. Nevertheless, such solutions not only require large chemical potentials but also an asymmetry between the individual chemical potentials of e and  ( ). Asymmetries between the dierent avor degeneracies may be erased in the presence of neutrino oscillations.

Massive Decaying Particles

The out-of-equilibrium decay or annihilation of long-lived particles ( > 0:1s), such as light  supersymmetric particles, as well as non-thermal particle production by, for example, evaporating primordial black holes or collapsing cosmic string loops, during, or after, the BBN era may signicantly alter the BBN nucleosynthesis yields [19]. The decays may be classied according to if they are (i) radiative or (ii) hadronic, in particular, whether the electromagnetic or strong interactions of the injected non-thermal particles are most relevant. Electromagnetically interacting particles (i.e. , e ) thermalize quickly in the ambient photonpair plasma at high temperatures, such that they usually have little eect on BBN other than some heating of the plasma. In contrast, if radiative decays occur at lower temperatures after a conventional BBN epoch, they result in a rapidly developing -e cascade which only subsides when individual -rays of the cascade do not have enough energy to further pair-produce e on the ambient cosmic background radiation. The net result of this cascade is a less rapidly developing -ray background whose properties only depend on the total amount of energy released in electromagnetically interacting particles and the epoch of decay. At temperatures T < 5keV the most energetic -rays in this background may photodissociate deuterium, at  temperatures T < 0:5keV the photodisintegration of 4 He becomes possible. Radiative decays  at T  5keV may result in a BBN scenario with low 2 H and low 4 He if an ordinary SBBN scenario at low  is followed by an epoch of deuterium photodisintegration [20]. Radiative decays at lower temperatures may produce signcant amounts of 2 H and 3 He. Nevertheless, this process is unlikely to be the sole producer of 2 H due to resulting observationally disfavored

a) Radiative decays:

5
3

He/2 H ratio. The possible overproduction of 3 He and 2 H by the photodisintegration of 4 He has been used to place meaningful limits on the amount of non-thermal, electromagnetically interacting energy released into the cosmic background. These limits may actually be more stringent than comparable limits from the distortion of the cosmic microwave background radiation [21].

b) Hadronic decays:

The injection of hadrons into the plasma, such as  's, 0 's and nucleons, may aect lightelement nucleosythesis during, or after, the BBN era and by the destruction and production of nuclei. In general, possible scenarios and reactions are numerous. If charged hadrons are produced with high energies below cosmic temperature T < keV they may cause a cascade  leading to the possibility of photodisintegration of nuclei (see radiative decays). Through charge exchange reactions the release of about ten pions per nucleon at T  1MeV results in a signicant perturbation of weak freeze-out and increased Yp [22]. A fraction of only  10 3 antinucleons per nucleon may cause overproduction of 3 He and 2 H through antinucleon { 4 He annihilations. It is also conceivable that the particle decaying carries baryon number such that the cosmic baryon number is created during the BBN era. A well-studied BBN scenario is the injection of high-energy ( 1GeV) nucleons created in hadronic jets which are produced by the decay of the parent particle [23]. If released after a conventional BBN era these high-energy nucleons may spall pre-existing 4 He, thereby producing high-energy 2 H, 3 H, and 3 He as well as neutrons. Such energetic light nuclei may initiate an epoch of non-thermal nucleosythesis. It was found that the nucleosynthesis yields from a BBN scenario with hadrodestruction/production and photodisintegration may result in abundance yields independent of  for a range in total energy injection, and half-life of the decaying particles. Nevertheless, such scenarios seem to produce 6 Li in con ict with observational constraints.

Other Modications to BBN

There are many other variants to a standard big bang nucleosythesis scenario which have not been mentioned here. These include anisotropic expansion, variations of fundamental constants, theories other than general relativity, magnetic elds during BBN, superconducting cosmic strings during BBN, among others. The in uence of many, but not all, of those scenarions on BBN is due to the expansion rate eect. Studies of such variants is of importance mainly due to the constraints they allow one to derive on the evolution of the early universe.

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