Particle Physics Processes in Cosmology Through an Effective Minkowski Space Formulation and the Limitations of the Method

Abstract

We introduce a method where particle physics processes in cosmology may be calculated by the usual perturbative flat space quantum field theory through an effective Minkowski space description at small time intervals provided that the running of the effective particle masses are sufficiently slow. We discuss the necessary conditions for the applicability of this method and illustrate the method through a simple example. This method has the advantage of avoiding the effects of gravitational particle creation in the calculation of rates and cross sections i.e. giving directly the rates and the cross sections due to the scatterings or the decay processes.