$\mathcal{R}^2$-corrected Tachyon Scalar Field Inflation, the ACT Data, and Phantom Transition

TL;DR

This work investigates phantom divide line transitions within a tachyonic inflationary model augmented by $R^2$ corrections and a rescaled Einstein–Hilbert term $\lambda$, realized as an effective $f(\mathcal{R},\phi)$ gravity. Using an inverse-square potential, the authors derive slow-roll observables $n_{\mathcal{S}}$ and $r$ and show ACT compatibility arises only when gravity is effectively stronger than Einstein gravity, i.e., $G_{\text{eff}}=G/\lambda$ with $\lambda<1$. Remarkably, the model exhibits a phantom-to-quintessence crossing during inflation, with $w_{\text{eff}}$ evolving from about $-1$ to $-1/3$, driven by the interplay between the tachyonic field and the $R^2$ term. This indicates a novel mechanism for phantom crossing in $f(\mathcal{R},\phi)$ gravity and highlights the role of high-curvature corrections in matching ACT data, while post-inflationary physics remains unaffected by the rescaling.

Abstract

Phantom divide line transitions are not possible in the context of single scalar field scalar-tensor theories. In this article we study a combined framework of a tachyonic minimally coupled single scalar field theory in the presence of an $\mathcal{R}^2$ correction term and with a rescaled Einstein-Hilbert term of the form $\sim λ\frac{\mathcal{R}}{16πG}$. Such terms can be part of an $f(\mathcal{R})$ gravity which in the large curvature regime yields such correction terms effectively. Alternatively, such terms can simply be quantum corrections to the scalar field action. We aim to answer two questions, firstly if this framework can lead to phantom divide line transitions and secondly whether the resulting model can be compatible with the ACT data. The model we studied is an inverse square power-law model, well known from tachyon inflation models. As we show, the field equations can be cast in terms of the scalar field solely, however the resulting theory is distinct from a single scalar field theory, because the phantom divide line is crossed during inflation. Thus initially the tachyonic nature of the scalar field generates a phantom equation of state parameter, and during inflation the phantom divide line is crossed, with the effective equation of state parameter at the end of inflation being $w=-1/3$ which corresponds to the non-accelerating state of the Universe. The model is proved to be compatible with the ACT data, only when the gravity during inflation is stronger than Einstein-Hilbert gravity, with the effective gravitational constant during inflation being $\frac{G}λ$. The effective theory is valid only during inflation, thus Big-Bang nucleosynthesis is not affected by the rescaling of the Einstein-Hilbert gravity. The feature of a phantom crossing in $f(\mathcal{R},φ)$ frameworks is new in the literature.

Figures (1)

• Figure 1: The 2018 marginalized Planck likelihood curves, the ACT constraints and the updated Planck constraints on the tensor-to-scalar ratio, versus the rescaled $\mathcal{R}^2$-corrected tachyonic inverse square power-law inflation model for $\mathcal{V}_0=8\times 10^{-12}$, $\beta=0.000004$, $\lambda=0.1$, and $N$ in the range $N=[50,60]$.