Critical analysis of Goldberger-Wise stabilization of the Randall-Sundrum braneworld scenario

The Goldberger-Wise mechanism of stabilizing modulus in the Randall-Sundrum braneworld, by introducing a bulk scalar field with quartic interaction terms localized at the 3-branes, has been extremely popular as a stabilizing mechanism when the backreaction of the scalar field on the geometry is negligibly small. In this paper we reexamine the mechanism by an exact analysis without resorting to the approximations adopted by Goldberger and Wise. An exact calculation of the stabilization condition indicates the existence of closely spaced minimum and a maximum for the potential and also brings out some new features involved in the context of the stabilization of such braneworld models.