Dark Energy and Stabilization of Extra Dimensions

Abstract

We discuss the role Casimir energies may play in addressing issues of moduli stabilization and dark energy. In particular, we examine a (non-supersymmetric) brane world scenario with toroidal extra dimensions in which Casimir energies of bulk fields generate a stabilizing potential for the toroidal volume while driving accelerated expansion in the non-compact directions. We speculate that such a scenario might establish a link between asymmetric topology and asymmetric geometry; that is, asymmetric topology could be linked to the hierarchy between large and small dimensions.