N = 2 Supersymmetry in a Hybrid Inflation Model

Abstract

The slow roll inflation requires an extremely flat inflaton potential. The supersymmetry (SUSY) is not only motivated from the gauge hierarchy problem, but also from stabilizing that flatness of the inflaton potential against radiative corrections. However, it has been known that the Planck suppressed higher order terms in the Kähler potential receive large radiative corrections loosing the required flatness in the N = 1 supergravity. We propose to impose a global N = 2 SUSY on the inflaton sector. What we find is that the N = 2 SUSY Abelian gauge theory is exactly the same as the desired hybrid inflation model. The flat potential at the tree level is not our choice of parameters but a result of the symmetry. We further introduce a cut-off scale of the theory which is lower than the Planck scale. This lower cut-off scale suppresses the supergravity loop corrections to the flat inflaton potential.