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{{short description|Speculative feature of the early universe}}
{{distinguish|text=[[String (physics)|string]] in [[string theory]]}}
'''Cosmic strings''' are hypothetical 1-dimensional [[topological defect]]s which may have formed during a [[symmetry breaking]] [[phase transition]] in the early universe when the [[topology]] of the [[Vacuum state|vacuum]] manifold associated to this symmetry breaking was not [[Simply connected space|simply connected]]. It is expected that at least one string per [[Hubble volume]] is formed. Their existence was first contemplated by the theoretical physicist [[Tom Kibble]] in the 1970s<ref>{{cite journal |doi=10.1088/0305-4470/9/8/029 |title=Topology of cosmic domains and strings |year=1976 |last1=Kibble |first1=Tom W K |journal= Journal of Physics A: Mathematical and General |volume=9 |issue=8 }}</ref>.
The formation of cosmic strings is somewhat analogous to the imperfections that form between crystal grains in solidifying liquids, or the cracks that form when water freezes into ice. The phase transitions leading to the production of cosmic strings are likely to have occurred during the earliest moments of the universe's evolution, just after [[cosmological inflation]], and are a fairly generic prediction in both [[quantum field theory]] and [[string theory]] models of the [[early universe]].
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