Mutated Hybrid Inflation

Abstract

A new model of inflation is described. An unusual form for the inflationary potential is obtained because the inflaton corresponds to a non-trivial path in the configuration space of the two real scalar fields of the model. The model predicts a spectral index $n=1-3/2N\simeq 0.97$ for the density perturbations and negligible gravitational waves.

Comments: 5 pages, particle physics motivation expanded, other minor changes