Stochastic Baryogenesis

Abstract: Using a multi-field stochastic approach, we investigate the vacuum expectation value (VEV) during inflation of a scalar field charged under a mildly broken global $U(1)$ symmetry that can play the role of baryon or lepton number, or possibly a dark baryon number or a combination of the three. Even for a CP invariant Lagrangian, the stochastic distribution of inflationary VEVs in general breaks CP spontaneously, allowing for successful baryogenesis via the Affleck-Dine mechanism. For the Hubble scale during inflation $H_\ast$ as high as $10^{13}$ GeV, we show that the post-inflationary relaxation of the charged scalar with stochastic initial conditions can explain the observed baryon asymmetry, and that a charged scalar mass at the order of $H_\ast$ is favored by the isocurvature constraints.