Cosmology of B-L cosmic strings
  ${\rm B - L}$ cosmic strings form in a wide class of theories beyond the Standard Model which contain a ${\rm U}(1)_{{\rm B - L}}$ gauge symmetry. They can form at the end of hybrid inflation and explain, together with inflation, the Cosmic Microwave Background anisotropies and the formation of large scale structure. They can produce Cold Dark Matter in the form of the Lightest SuperParticle and they can be at the origin of the baryon asymmetry of our universe. One major advantage of these mechanisms is that they are non-thermal. 
R. Jeannerot (Leiden U.)