Isocurvature Fluctuations of the M-theory Axion in a Hybrid Inflation Model

Abstract

The M-theory, the strong-coupling heterotic string theory, presents various interesting new phenomenologies. The M-theory bulk axion is one of these. The decay constant in this context is estimated as $F_a\simeq 10^{16}$ GeV. Direct searches for the M-theory axion seem impossible because of the large decay constant. However, we point out that large isocurvature fluctuations of the M-theory axion are obtained in a hybrid inflation model, which will most likely be detectable in future satellite experiments on anisotropies of cosmic microwave background radiation.

Comments: 14 pages (RevTeX file), the final version to appear in Prog. Theor. Phys