Analysis of Phantom Cosmology With Different Potentials: Inflation and Isotropization

We investigate inflationary dynamics and isotropization in a phantom-field model with five families of potentials on Bianchi I, Bianchi III, and Kantowski-Sachs backgrounds. First, the general properties of the model are established, and Heusler’s proposition is extended. To address the limitations of this proposition, a powerful dynamical-systems approach is then adopted to provide a comprehensive analysis of the cosmological evolution. In total, 87 critical points are identified and their properties are analyzed. Throughout the analysis, we emphasize the physical interpretation of the mathematical results and aim to provide a thorough explanation of the rationale behind the choice of each mathematical tool and variable. Within this framework, the conclusions of Collins and Hawking and of Burd and Barrow are revisited, and several challenging questions with deep conceptual implications are posed and discussed.