Thermodynamic stability in an Einstein universe

Abstract: We calculate the Feynman propagator at finite temperature in an Einstein universe for a neutral massive scalar field arbitrarily coupled to the Ricci curvature. Then, the propagator is used to determine the mean square fluctuation, the internal energy, and pressure of a scalar blackbody radiation as functions of the curvature coupling parameter $ξ$. By studying thermodynamics of massless scalar fields, we show that the only value of $ξ$ consistent with stable thermodynamic equilibrium at all temperatures and for all radii of the universe is $1/6$, i.e., corresponding to the conformal coupling. Moreover, if electromagnetic and neutrino radiations are present at the regime of high temperatures and/or large radii, we show that at least one scalar field must also be present to ensure thermodynamic stability.