We give an upper estimate for the number of gamma ray bursts from ordinary (non-superconducting) cosmic strings expected to be observed at terrestrial detectors. Assuming that cusp annihilation is the mechanism responsible for the bursts we consider strings arising at a GUT phase transition and compare our estimate with the recent BATSE results. Further we give a lower limit for the effective a...

Chiral cosmic strings naturally arise in many particle physics models, in particular in supersymmetric theories with a D-term. These strings have a single fermion zero mode in the core. We derive the general equation of motion for such strings. In Minkowski space we give the self-intersections for an arbitary varying current on the loop, showing that the self-intersection probability is dominat...

We use the analytical model recently introduced in Ref. [1], to investigate the statistics of temperature fluctuations on the cosmic microwave background (CMB), induced by topological defects. The cases of cosmic strings and textures are studied. We derive analytically the characteristic function of the probability distribution for δT T and use it to obtain the lowest twelve moments including t...

The IceCube Observatory is a km neutrino telescope currently under construction at the geographic South Pole. It will comprise 4800 optical sensors deployed on 80 vertical strings between 1450 and 2450 meters under the ice surface. Currently IceCube is operational and recording data with 40 strings (i.e. 2400 optical sensors). The IceCube Observatory will collect an unprecedented number of high...

We calculate the flux of ultra high energy photons from individual ordinary (i.e. non-superconducting) cosmic strings and compare the results with the sensitivity of current and proposed TeV and EeV telescopes. Our calculations give only upper limits for the gamma ray flux, since the source of the photons, jets from particle production at cusps, may be weakened by back reaction effects. For the...

We present the results of a field theory simulation of networks of strings in the Abelian Higgs model. Starting from a random initial configuration we show that the resulting vortex tangle approaches a self-similar regime in which the length density of lines of zeros of φ reduces as t. We demonstrate that the network loses energy directly into scalar and gauge radiation. These results support a...

We present results of a cosmological hydrodynamical study of gravitational accretion in cosmic string wakes and filaments. Cosmic string wakes are formed by fast moving (v ∼ c) strings. A conical deficit angle in the string spacetime induces a velocity perturbation in the background matter and a two-dimensional wake accretes in the path of the string. Filaments are formed by slow moving strings...