Signatures of symmetry-breakings in primordial cosmological perturbations

Abstract: In this seminar I will discuss some possibilities to break statistical isotropy (and simultaneously parity) due to the presence of vector fields during inflation. Such symmetry-breakings imprint very rich signatures in the CMB, being characterized by a kind of "fine structure'" in the CMB power spectra. The models I consider offer also the first inflationary realization of a specific non-Gaussian signature. Finally I will mention future CMB and LSS observational probes for these distinctive symmetry-breakings features. These subtle effects, if revealed (or strongly constrained), can allow to improve our understanding of the dynamics of inflation.