Formation and Evolution of Cosmic Strings

Abstract

First of all, cosmic strings are not superstrings. Superstring theory is an attempt to supplant field theory as the most fundamental language with which to describe physics. Standard field theories would then appear as a “low energy” limit of superstring theory. The strings I shall discuss today are just particular field configurations that can appear in “ordinary” field theories, regardless of whether there is an underlying superstring theory. Their existence was first demonstrated by Nielsen and Olesen [1] and these strings are often called Nielsen-Olesen strings.