  We investigate the nonlinear dynamics of hybrid inflation models, which are
characterized by two real scalar fields interacting quadratically. We start by
solving numerically the coupled Klein-Gordon equations in static Minkowski
spacetime, searching for possible coherent structures. We find long-lived,
localized configurations, which we identify as a new kind of oscillon. We
demonstrate that these two-field oscillons allow for "excited" states with much
longer lifetimes than those found in previous studies of single-field
oscillons. We then solve the coupled field equations in an expanding
Friedmann-Robertson-Walker spacetime, finding that as the field responsible for
inflating the Universe rolls down to oscillate about its minimum, it triggers
the formation of long-lived two-field oscillons, which can contribute up to 20%
of the total energy density of the Universe. We show that these oscillons
emerge for a wide range of parameters consistent with WMAP 7-year data. These
objects contain total energy of about 25*10^20 GeV, localized in a region of
approximate radius 6*10^-26 cm. We argue that these structures could have
played a key role during the reheating of the Universe.
