Abstract

We present exact non-singular bounce solutions of general relativity in the presence of a positive cosmological constant and an electromagnetic field, without any exotic matter. The solutions are distinguished by being spatially inhomogeneous in one direction, while they can also contain non-trivial electromagnetic field lines. The inhomogeneity may be substantial, for instance there can be one bounce in one region of the universe, and two bounces elsewhere. Since the bounces are followed by a phase of accelerated expansion, the metrics described here also permit the study of (geodesically complete) models of inflation with inhomogeneous "initial" conditions. Our solutions admit two Killing vectors, and may be re-interpreted as the pathology-free interior regions of Kerr-de Sitter black holes with non-trivial NUT charge. Remarkably enough, within this cosmological context the NUT parameter does not introduce any string singularity nor closed timelike curves but renders the geometry everywhere regular, eliminating the Big-Bang singularity by means of a bounce.