Building on our previous cross-correlation analysis (Xia et al. 2011) between the isotropic gamma-ray background (IGRB) and different tracers of the large-scale structure of the universe, we update our results using 60-months of data from the Large Area Telescope (LAT) on board the Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope. We perform a cross-correlation analysis between the IGRB and objects that may trace the astrophysical sources of the IGRB: SDSS-DR6 QSOs, the SDSS-DR8 Main Galaxy Sample, Luminous Red Galaxies (LRGs) in the SDSS catalog, 2MASS galaxies, and radio NVSS galaxies. The benefit of correlating the Fermi-LAT signal with catalogs of objects at various redshifts is to provide tomographic information on the IGRB which is crucial to separate the various contributions and to clarify its origin. We observe a significant (>3.5 sigma) cross-correlation signal on angular scales smaller than 1 deg in the NVSS, 2MASS and QSO cases and, at lower statistical significance (~3.0 sigma), with SDSS galaxies. These results are robust against the choice of the statistical estimator, estimate of errors, map cleaning procedure and instrumental effects. Finally, we test the hypothesis that the IGRB observed by Fermi-LAT originates from the summed contributions of three types of unresolved extragalactic sources: BL Lacs, FSRQs and Star-Forming Galaxies (SFGs). We find that a model in which the IGRB is mainly produced by SFGs ($72^{+23}_{-37}$% with 2 sigma errors), with BL Lacs and FSRQs giving a minor contribution, provides a good fit to the data. We also consider a possible contribution from Misaligned Active Galactic Nuclei, and we find that, depending on the details of the model and its uncertainty, they can also provide a substantial contribution, partly degenerate with the SFG one. (abridged)
Future galaxy surveys require one percent precision in the theoretical knowledge of the power spectrum over a large range including very nonlinear scales. While this level of accuracy is easily obtained in the linear regime with perturbation theory, it represents a serious challenge for small scales where numerical simulations are required. In this paper we quantify the accuracy of present-day $N$-body methods, identifying main potential error sources from the set-up of initial conditions to the measurement of the final power spectrum. We directly compare three widely used $N$-body codes, Ramses, Pkdgrav3, and Gadget3 which represent three main discretisation techniques: the particle-mesh method, the tree method, and a hybrid combination of the two. For standard run parameters, the codes agree to within one percent at $k\leq1$ $h\,\rm Mpc^{-1}$ and to within three percent at $k\leq10$ $h\,\rm Mpc^{-1}$. In a second step, we quantify potential errors due to initial conditions, box size, and resolution using an extended suite of simulations performed with our fastest code {\tt Pkdgrav3}. We demonstrate that both a minimum box size of $L=500$ $h^{-1}\rm Mpc$ and a maximum particle mass of $M_{\rm p}=10^{9}$ $h^{-1}\rm M_{\odot}$ are required to obtain one percent precision of the matter power spectrum. As a consequence, numerical simulations covering large survey volumes of upcoming missions such as DES, LSST, and Euclid will need more than a trillion particles to reproduce clustering properties at the targeted accuracy.
If dark matter (DM) is composed by particles which are non-gravitationally coupled to ordinary matter, their annihilations or decays in cosmic structures can result in detectable radiation. We show that the most powerful technique to detect a particle DM signal outside the Local Group is to study the angular cross-correlation of non-gravitational signals with low-redshift gravitational probes. This method allows to enhance signal-to-noise from the regions of the Universe where the DM-induced emission is preferentially generated. We demonstrate the power of this approach by focusing on GeV-TeV DM and on the recent cross-correlation analysis between the 2MASS galaxy catalogue and the Fermi-LAT gamma-ray maps. We show that this technique is more sensitive than other extragalactic gamma-ray probes, such as the energy spectrum and angular autocorrelation of the extragalactic background, and emission from clusters of galaxies. Intriguingly, we find that the measured cross-correlation can be well fitted by a DM component, with thermal annihilation cross section and mass between 10 and 100 GeV, depending on the small-scale DM properties and gamma-ray production mechanism. This solicits further data collection and dedicated analyses.
Two-point correlation functions of cosmic microwave background polarization provide a physically independent probe of the surprising suppression of correlations in the cosmic microwave background temperature anisotropies at large angular scales. We investigate correlation functions constructed from both the Q and U Stokes parameters and from the E and B polarization components. The dominant contribution to these correlation functions comes from local physical effects at the last scattering surface or from the epoch of reionization at high redshift, so all should be suppressed if the temperature suppression is due to an underlying lack of correlations in the cosmological metric perturbations larger than a given scale. We evaluate the correlation functions for the standard $\Lambda$CDM cosmology constrained by the observed temperature correlation function, and compute statistics characterizing their suppression on large angular scales. Future full-sky polarization maps with minimal systematic errors on large angular scales will provide strong tests of whether the observed temperature correlation function is a statistical fluke or reflects a fundamental shortcoming of the standard cosmological model.
Spatial variations in the distribution of galaxy luminosities, estimated from redshifts as distance proxies, are correlated with the peculiar velocity field. Comparing these variations with the peculiar velocities inferred from galaxy redshift surveys is a powerful test of gravity and dark energy theories on cosmological scales. Using ~ 2 $\times$ 10$^{5}$ galaxies from the SDSS Data Release 7, we perform this test in the framework of gravitational instability to estimate the normalized growth rate of density perturbations f$\sigma_{8}$ = 0.37 +/- 0.13 at z ~ 0.1, which is in agreement with the $\Lambda$CDM scenario. This unique measurement is complementary to those obtained with more traditional methods, including clustering analysis. The estimated accuracy at z ~ 0.1 is competitive with other methods when applied to similar datasets.
Particle methods are a ubiquitous tool for solving the Vlasov-Poisson equation in comoving coordinates, which is used to model the gravitational evolution of dark matter in an expanding universe. However, these methods are known to produce poor results on idealized test problems, particularly at late times, after the particle trajectories have crossed. To investigate this, we have performed a series of one- and two-dimensional "Zel'dovich Pancake" calculations using the popular Particle-in-Cell (PIC) method. We find that PIC can indeed converge on these problems provided the following modifications are made. The first modification is to regularize the singular initial distribution function by introducing a small but finite artificial velocity dispersion. This process is analogous to artificial viscosity in compressible gas dynamics, and, as with artificial viscosity, the amount of regularization can be tailored so that its effect outside of a well-defined region - in this case, the high-density caustics - is small. The second modification is the introduction of a particle remapping procedure that periodically re-expresses the dark matter distribution function using a new set of particles. We describe a remapping algorithm that is third-order accurate and adaptive in phase space. This procedure prevents the accumulation of numerical errors in integrating the particle trajectories from growing large enough to significantly degrade the solution. Once both of these changes are made, PIC converges at second order on the Zel'dovich Pancake problem, even at late times, after many caustics have formed. Furthermore, the resulting scheme does not suffer from the unphysical, small-scale "clumping" phenomenon known to occur on the Pancake problem when the perturbation wave vector is not aligned with one of the Cartesian coordinate axes.
We study the Cosmic Microwave Background using the three-scale framework of Hu et al. to derive the dependence of the CMB temperature anisotropy spectrum on the fundamental constants. We show that, as expected, the observed spectrum depends only on \emph{dimensionless} combinations of the constants, and we emphasize the points that make this generally true for cosmological observations. Our analysis suggests that the CMB spectrum shape is mostly determined by $\alpha^2m_e/m_p$ and the proton-CDM-particle mass ratio, $m_p/\mchi$, with a sub-dominant dependence on $(G\mchi m_e/\hbar c)\alpha^\beta$ with $\beta\sim -7$. The distance to the last-scattering surface depends on $Gm_p\mchi/\hbar c$, so published CMB observational limits on time variations of the constants, besides making assumptions about the form of the dark-energy, implicitly assume the time-independence of this quantity. On the other hand, low-redshift $H_0$, BAO and large-scale structure data can be combined with the \emph{shape} of the CMB spectrum to give information that is largely independent of the dark-energy model. In particular we show that the pre-recombination values of $G\mchi^2/\hbar c$ and $\alpha^2m_e/\mchi$ could not have differed from their present values by more than of order 25\%.
We present the redshift-space generalization of the equal-time angular-averaged consistency relations between $(\ell+n)$- and $n$-point polyspectra of the cosmological matter density field. Focusing on the case of $\ell=1$ large-scale mode and $n$ small-scale modes, we use an approximate symmetry of the gravitational dynamics to derive explicit expressions that hold beyond the perturbative regime, including both the large-scale Kaiser effect and the small-scale fingers-of-god effects. We explicitly check these relations, both perturbatively, for the lowest-order version that applies to the bispectrum, and nonperturbatively, for all orders but for the one-dimensional dynamics. Using a large ensemble of $N$-body simulations, we find that our squeezed bispectrum relation is valid to better than $20\%$ up to $1h$Mpc$^{-1}$, for both the monopole and quadrupole at $z=0.35$, in a $\Lambda$CDM cosmology. Additional simulations done for the Einstein-de Sitter background suggest that these discrepancies mainly come from the breakdown of the approximate symmetry of the gravitational dynamics. For practical applications, we introduce a simple ansatz to estimate the new derivative terms in the relation using only observables. Although the relation holds worse after using this ansatz, we can still recover it within $20\%$ up to $1h$Mpc$^{-1}$, at $z=0.35$ for the monopole. On larger scales, $k = 0.2 h\mathrm{Mpc}^{-1}$, it still holds within the statistical accuracy of idealized simulations of volume $\sim8h^{-3}\mathrm{Gpc}^3$ without shot-noise error.
We have simulated the formation of a galaxy cluster in a $\Lambda$CDM universe using twelve different codes modeling only gravity and non-radiative hydrodynamics (\art, \arepo, \hydra\ and 9 incarnations of GADGET). This range of codes includes particle based, moving and fixed mesh codes as well as both Eulerian and Lagrangian fluid schemes. The various GADGET implementations span traditional and advanced smoothed-particle hydrodynamics (SPH) schemes. The goal of this comparison is to assess the reliability of cosmological hydrodynamical simulations of clusters in the simplest astrophysically relevant case, that in which the gas is assumed to be non-radiative. We compare images of the cluster at $z=0$, global properties such as mass, and radial profiles of various dynamical and thermodynamical quantities. The underlying gravitational framework can be aligned very accurately for all the codes allowing a detailed investigation of the differences that develop due to the various gas physics implementations employed. As expected, the mesh-based codes ART and AREPO form extended entropy cores in the gas with rising central gas temperatures. Those codes employing traditional SPH schemes show falling entropy profiles all the way into the very centre with correspondingly rising density profiles and central temperature inversions. We show that methods with modern SPH schemes that allow entropy mixing span the range between these two extremes and the latest SPH variants produce gas entropy profiles that are essentially indistinguishable from those obtained with grid based methods.
The Pseudo-Nambu-Goldstone Boson (PNGB) potential, defined through the amplitude $M^4$ and width $f$ of its characteristic potential $V(\phi) = M^4[1 + \cos(\phi~ /~ f)]$, is one of the best-suited models for the study of thawing quintessence. We analyse its present observational constraints by direct numerical solution of the scalar field equation of motion. Observational bounds are obtained using data from Union 2.1 for Supernovae, cosmic microwave background temperature anisotropies from Planck plus WMAP polarization data, and baryon acoustic oscillations data. We find the parameter ranges for which PNGB quintessence remains a viable theory for dark energy. We compare the direct potential analysis and use of an approximate equation-of-state parameterization for thawing theories; this comparison highlights a strong prior dependence to the outcome coming from the choice of modelling methodology, which current data are not sufficient to override.
The problem of cosmological production of (massless) gravitons is discussed in the framework of an expanding, spatially homogeneous and isotropic FRW type Universe with decaying vacuum energy density ($\Lambda \equiv \Lambda(H(t))$) described by general relativity theory. The gravitational wave equation is established and its time-dependent part has analytically been solved for different epochs in the case of a flat geometry. Unlike the standard $\Lambda$CDM cosmology (no interacting vacuum), we show that massless gravitons can be produced during the radiation era. However, high frequency modes are damped out even faster than in the standard cosmology both in the radiation and matter-vacuum dominated epoch. The formation of the stochastic background of gravitons and the remnant power spectrum generated at different cosmological eras are also explicitly evaluated.
An excess in gamma-rays from the galactic center observed by the Fermi Large Area Telescope has been proposed as a possible signal of dark matter annihilation. Recently, the Fermi collaboration showed that systematic errors broaden the range of spectral shapes for this excess. We demonstrate fits to this range for (1) flavor-violating annihilations to top-charm pairs and (2) annihilations to on-shell bosonic mediators which decay to Standard Model quarks in a boosted frame. Annihilation of 40 - 100 GeV DM to pairs of spin-1 mediators provide a good fit to the Fermi-LAT spectrum with a normalization consistent with a thermal relic. Top-charm modes and annihilation to three pseudoscalar mediators can fit the spectral shape but typically require non-thermal annihilation cross sections.
We present results from multiwavelength observations of the galaxy NGC5005. We use new neutral hydrogen (HI) observations from the Very Large Array to examine the neutral gas morphology and kinematics. We find an HI disk with a well-behaved flat rotation curve in the radial range 20\arcsec-140\arcsec. Ionized gas observations from the SparsePak integral field unit on the WIYN 3.5m telescope provide kinematics for the central 70\arcsec. We use both the SparsePak and HI velocity fields to derive a rotation curve for NGC5005. Deep 3.6{\mu}m observations from the Spitzer Space Telescope probe the faint extended stellar population of NGC5005. The images reveal a large stellar disk with a high surface brightness component that transitions to a low surface brightness component at a radius nearly 1.6 times farther than the extent of the gas disk detected in HI. The 3.6{\mu}m image is also decomposed into bulge and disk components to account for the stellar light distribution. Optical broadband B and R and narrowband H{\alpha} from the WIYN 0.9m telescope complement the 3.6{\mu}m data by providing information about the dominant stellar population and current star formation activity. The neutral and ionized gas rotation curve is used along with the stellar bulge and disk light profiles to decompose the mass distributions in NGC5005 and determine a dark matter halo model. The maximum stellar disk contribution to the total rotation curve is only about 70\%, suggesting that dark matter makes a significant contribution to the dynamics at all radii.
By applying fractional calculus to the equation proposed by M. Planck in 1900, we obtain a new blackbody radiation law described by a Mittag-Leffler (ML) function. We have analyzed NASA COBE data by means of a non-extensive formula with a parameter $(q-1)$, a formula proposed by Ertik et al. with a fractional parameter $(\alpha-1)$, and our new formula including a parameter $(p-1)$, as well as the Bose-Einstein distribution with a dimensionless chemical potential $\mu$. It can be said that one role of the fractional parameter $(p-1)$ is almost the same as that of chemical potential $(\mu)$ as well as that of the parameter $(q-1)$ in the non-extensive approach.
We consider the Damour-Dyson analysis of the sensitivity of neutron resonance energies $E_i$ to changes in the fine structure constant $\alpha$. We point out that, with more appropriate choices of nuclear parameters, their result for ${}^{150}$Sm is increased by a factor of 2.5. We go on to identify and compute excitation, Coulomb and deformation corrections. To this end, we use deformed Fermi density distributions fitted to the output of HF+BCS calculations, the energetics of the surface diffuseness of nuclei, and thermal properties of their deformation; we also invoke the eigenstate thermalization hypothesis, performing the requisite microcanonical averages with phenomenological level densities which include the effect of increased surface diffuseness. We find that the corrections diminish the revised ${}^{150}$Sm sensitivity but not by more than 25\%. More precisely, we establish that $\alpha dE_i / d\alpha < (-2.2\pm 0.3)\,\text{MeV}$ (similar inequalities are also obtained for ${}^{156}$Gd and ${}^{158}$Gd). Subject to a weak and testable restriction on the change in $m_q/\Lambda$ (relative to the change in $\alpha$) since the time when the Oklo reactors were active ($m_q$ is the average of the $\text{u}$ and $\text{d}$ current quark masses, and $\Lambda$ is the mass scale of quantum chromodynamics), we deduce that $|\alpha_{\text{Oklo}} - \alpha_{\text{now}}| < 1.3\times 10^{-8} \alpha_{\text{now}}$. This bound is comparable to existing Oklo-based limits, but has a stronger theoretical basis which resolves uncertainties that plagued earlier treatments.
In 'hilltop inflation', inflation takes place when the inflaton field slowly rolls from close to a maximum of its potential (i.e. the 'hilltop') towards its minimum. When the inflaton potential is associated with a phase transition, possible topological defects produced during this phase transition, such as domain walls, are efficiently diluted during inflation. It is typically assumed that they also do not reform after inflation, i.e. that the inflaton field stays on its side of the 'hill', finally performing damped oscillations around the minimum of the potential. In this paper we study the linear and the non-linear phases of preheating after hilltop inflation. We find that the fluctuations of the inflaton field during the tachyonic oscillation phase grow strong enough to allow the inflaton field to form regions in position space where it crosses 'over the top of the hill' towards the 'wrong vacuum'. We investigate the formation and behaviour of these overshooting regions using lattice simulations: Rather than durable domain walls, these regions form oscillon-like structures (i.e. localized bubbles that oscillate between the two vacua) which should be included in a careful study of preheating in hilltop inflation.
We describe a class of modified gravity theories that deform general
relativity in a way that breaks time reversal invariance and, very mildly,
locality. The algebra of constraints, local physical degrees of freedom, and
their linearized equations of motion, are unchanged, yet observable effects may
be present on cosmological scales, which have implications for the early
history of the universe.
This is achieved in the Hamiltonian framework, in a way that requires the
constant mean curvature gauge conditions and is, hence, inspired by shape
dynamics.
We attempt to simultaneously explain the recently observed 3.55 keV X-ray line in the analysis of XMM-Newton telescope data and the galactic center gamma ray excess observed by the Fermi gamma ray space telescope within an abelian gauge extension of standard model. We consider a two component dark matter scenario with a mass difference 3.55 keV such that the heavier one can decay into the lighter one and a photon with energy 3.55 keV. The lighter dark matter candidate is protected from decaying into the standard model particles by a remnant $Z_2$ symmetry into which the abelian gauge symmetry gets spontaneously broken. If the mass of the dark matter particle is chosen to be within $31-40$ GeV, then this model can also explain the galactic center gamma ray excess if the dark matter annihilation into $b\bar{b}$ pairs has a cross section of $\langle \sigma v \rangle \simeq (1.4-2.0) \times 10^{-26} \; \text{cm}^3/\text{s}$. We constrain the model from the requirement of producing correct dark matter relic density, 3.55 keV X-ray line flux and galactic center gamma ray excess. We also impose the bounds coming from dark matter direct detection experiments as well as collider limits on additional gauge boson mass and coupling. We also briefly discuss how this model can give rise to sub-eV neutrino masses at tree level as well as one loop level while keeping the dark matter mass at few tens of GeV. We also show the natural origin of keV mass splitting between two electroweak scale dark matter particles at one loop level in this model.
Links to: arXiv, form interface, find, astro-ph, recent, 1503, contact, help (Access key information)
Weak gravitational lensing is a powerful cosmological probe, with non--Gaussian features potentially containing the majority of the information. We examine constraints on the parameter triplet $(\Omega_m,w,\sigma_8)$ from non-Gaussian features of the weak lensing convergence field, including a set of moments (up to $4^{\rm th}$ order) and Minkowski functionals, using publicly available data from the 154deg$^2$ CFHTLenS survey. We utilize a suite of ray--tracing N-body simulations spanning 91 points in $(\Omega_m,w,\sigma_8)$ parameter space, replicating the galaxy sky positions, redshifts and shape noise in the CFHTLenS catalogs. We then build an emulator that interpolates the simulated descriptors as a function of $(\Omega_m,w,\sigma_8)$, and use it to compute the likelihood function and parameter constraints. We employ a principal component analysis to reduce dimensionality and to help stabilize the constraints with respect to the number of bins used to construct each statistic. Using the full set of statistics, we find $\Sigma_8\equiv\sigma_8(\Omega_m/0.27)^{0.55}=0.75\pm0.04$ (68% C.L.), in agreement with previous values. We find that constraints on the $(\Omega_m,\sigma_8)$ doublet from the Minkowski functionals suffer a strong bias. However, high-order moments break the $(\Omega_m,\sigma_8)$ degeneracy and provide a tight constraint on these parameters with no apparent bias. The main contribution comes from quartic moments of derivatives.
We present the first pointed X-ray observations of ten candidate fossil galaxy groups and clusters. With these Suzaku observations, we determine global temperatures and bolometric X-ray luminosities of the intracluster medium (ICM) out to $r_{500}$ for six systems in our sample. The remaining four systems show signs of significant contamination from non-ICM sources. For the six objects with successfully determined $r_{500}$ properties, we measure global temperatures between $2.8 \ \mathrm{keV} \leq T_{\mathrm{X}} \leq 5.3 \ \mathrm{keV}$, bolometric X-ray luminosities of $0.6 \times 10^{44} \ \mathrm{ergs} \ \mathrm{s}^{-1} \leq L_{\mathrm{X,bol}} \leq 7.2\times 10^{44} \ \mathrm{ergs} \ \mathrm{s}^{-1}$, and estimate masses, as derived from $T_{\mathrm{X}}$, of $M_{500} \gtrsim 10^{14} \ \mathrm{M}_{\odot}$. Scaling relations are constructed for an assembled sample of fossil and non-fossil systems using global X-ray luminosities, temperatures, optical luminosities, and velocity dispersions. The fit of the scaling relations for fossil systems is found to be consistent with the fit of the relations for normal groups and clusters. We find fossil systems have global ICM X-ray properties similar to those of comparable mass non-fossil systems.
The launch of the gamma-ray telescope Fermi Large Area Telescope (Fermi-LAT) started a pivotal period in indirect detection of dark matter. By outperforming expectations, for the first time a robust and stringent test of the paradigm of weakly interacting massive particles (WIMPs) is within reach. In this paper, we discuss astrophysical targets for WIMP detection and the challenges they present, review the analysis tools which have been employed to tackle these challenges, and summarize the status of constraints on and the claimed detections in the WIMP parameter space. Methods and results will be discussed in comparison to Imaging Air Cherenkov Telescopes. We also provide an outlook on short term and longer term developments.
We report on the weak lensing detection of a filament between two galaxy clusters at $z=0.55$, CL0015.9+1609 and RX J0018.3+1618. We conduct weak lensing analysis of deep multi-band Subaru/Suprime-Cam images with $Lensfit$. The weak lensing signals from the filament are contaminated by signals from the adjacent massive clusters and we statistically subtract the cluster component using two different methods. Both methods yield consistent shear profiles on the filament with $\gtrsim2\sigma$ significance and the average surface mass density of the filament is $<\Sigma>=(3.20\pm0.10)\times10^{14}h$ M$_\odot$Mpc$^{-2}$, which is in broad agreement with previous studies. On-going surveys such as Hyper Suprime-Cam will identify more filaments, which will serve as a new probe of structure formation in the Universe.
The use of type Ic Super Luminous Supernovae (SLSN Ic) to examine the cosmological expansion introduces a new standard ruler with which to test theoretical models. The sample suitable for this kind of work now includes 11 SLSNe Ic, which have thus far been used solely in tests involving $\Lambda$CDM. In this paper, we broaden the base of support for this new, important cosmic probe by using these observations to carry out a one-on-one comparison between the $R_{\rm h}=ct$ and $\Lambda$CDM cosmologies. We individually optimize the parameters in each cosmological model by minimizing the $\chi^{2}$ statistic. We also carry out Monte Carlo simulations based on these current SLSN Ic measurements to estimate how large the sample would have to be in order to rule out either model at a $\sim 99.7\%$ confidence level. The currently available sample indicates a likelihood of $\sim$$70-80\%$ that the $R_{\rm h}=ct$ Universe is the correct cosmology versus $\sim$$20-30\%$ for the standard model. These results are suggestive, though not yet compelling, given the current limited number of SLSNe Ic. We find that if the real cosmology is $\Lambda$CDM, a sample of $\sim$$240$ SLSNe Ic would be sufficient to rule out $R_{\rm h}=ct$ at this level of confidence, while $\sim$$480$ SLSNe Ic would be required to rule out $\Lambda$CDM if the real Universe is instead $R_{\rm h}=ct$. This difference in required sample size reflects the greater number of free parameters available to fit the data with $\Lambda$CDM. If such SLSNe Ic are commonly detected in the future, they could be a powerful tool for constraining the dark-energy equation of state in $\Lambda$CDM, and differentiating between this model and the $R_{\rm h}=ct$ Universe.
We consider a model of the early universe which consists of two scalar fields: the inflaton, and a second field which drives the stabilisation of the Planck mass (or gravitational constant). We show that the non-minimal coupling of this second field to the Ricci scalar sources a non-adiabatic pressure perturbation. By performing a fully numerical calculation we find, in turn, that this boosts the amplitude of the primordial power spectrum after inflation.
Although the inflationary paradigm is the most widely accepted explanation for the current cosmological observations, it does not necessarily correspond to what actually happened in the early stages of our Universe. To decide on this issue, two paths can be followed: first, all the possible predictions it makes must be derived thoroughly and compared with available data, and second, all imaginable alternatives must be ruled out. Leaving the first task to all other contributors of this volume, we concentrate here on the second option, focusing on the bouncing alternatives and their consequences.
Theories which modify general relativity to explain the accelerated expansion of the Universe often use screening mechanisms to satisfy constraints on Solar System scales. We investigate the effects of the cosmic web and the local environmental density of dark matter halos on the screening properties of the Vainshtein and chameleon screening mechanisms. We compare the cosmic web morphology of dark matter particles, mass functions of dark matter halos, mass and radial dependence of screening, velocity dispersions and peculiar velocities, and environmental dependence of screening mechanisms in $f(R)$ and nDGP models. Using the ORIGAMI cosmic web identification routine we find that the Vainshtein mechanism depends on the cosmic web morphology of dark matter particles, since these are defined according to the dimensionality of their collapse, while the chameleon mechanism shows no morphology dependence. The chameleon screening of halos and their velocity dispersions depend on halo mass, and small halos and subhalos can be environmentally screened in the chameleon mechanism. On the other hand, the screening of halos in the Vainshtein mechanism does not depend on mass nor environment, and their velocity dispersions are suppressed. The peculiar velocities of halos in the Vainshtein mechanism are enhanced because screened objects can still feel the fifth force generated by external fields, while peculiar velocities of chameleon halos are suppressed when the halo centers are screened.
The proximity profile in the spectra of z~3 quasars, where fluxes extend
blueward of the He II Lya wavelength 304 (1+z) A, is one of the most important
spectral features in the study of the intergalactic medium. Based on the HST
spectra of 24 He II quasars, we find that the majority of them display a
proximity profile, corresponding to an ionization radius as large as 20 Mpc in
the source's rest frame. In comparison with those in the H i spectra of the
quasars at z~6, the He II proximity effect is more prominent and is observed
over a considerably longer period of reionization. The He II proximity zone
sizes decrease at higher redshifts, particularly at z > 3.3. This trend is
similar to that for H I, signaling an onset of He II reionization at z~4.
For quasar SDSS1253+6817 (z=3.48), the He II absorption trough displays a
gradual decline and serves a good case for modeling the He II reionization. To
model such a broad profile requires a quasar radiation field whose distribution
between 4 and 1 Rydberg is considerably harder than normally assumed. The UV
continuum of this quasar is indeed exceptionally steep, and the He II
ionization level in the quasar vicinity is higher than the average level in the
intergalactic medium. These results are evidence that a very hard EUV continuum
from this quasar produces a large ionized zone around it.
Distinct exceptions are the two brightest He II quasars at z~2.8, for which
no significant proximity profile is present, possibly implying that they are
young.
We demonstrate that high abundances of water vapor could have existed in extremely low metallicity ($10^{-3}$ solar) partially shielded gas, during the epoch of first metal enrichment of the interstellar medium of galaxies at high redshifts.
We analyze the parametric space of the constrained minimal supersymmetric standard model with mu>0 supplemented by a generalized asymptotic Yukawa coupling quasi-unification condition which yields acceptable masses for the fermions of the third family. We impose constraints from the cold dark matter abundance in the universe and its direct detection experiments, the B-physics, as well as the masses of the sparticles and the lightest neutral CP-even Higgs boson. Fixing the mass of the latter to its central value from the LHC and taking 40<=tanbeta<=50, we find a relatively wide allowed parameter space with -11<=A_0/M_{1/2}<=15 and mass of the lightest sparticle in the range (0.09-1.1) TeV. This sparticle is possibly detectable by the present cold dark matter direct search experiments. The required fine-tuning for the electroweak symmetry breaking is much milder than the one needed in the neutralino-stau coannihilation region of the same model.
At z>1, the distinction between merging and 'normal' star-forming galaxies based on single band morphology is often hampered by the presence of large clumps which result in a disturbed, merger-like appearance even in rotationally supported disks. In this paper we discuss how a classification based on canonical, non-parametric structural indices measured on resolved stellar mass maps, rather than on single-band images, reduces the misclassification of clumpy but not merging galaxies. We calibrate the mass-based selection of mergers using the MIRAGE hydrodynamical numerical simulations of isolated and merging galaxies which span a stellar mass range of $10^{9.8}$-$10^{10.6}M_{sun}$ and merger ratios between 1:1-1:6.3. These simulations are processed to reproduce the typical depth and spatial resolution of observed HUDF data. We test our approach on a sample of real z~2 galaxies with kinematic classification into disks or mergers and on ~100 galaxies in the HUDF field with photometric/spectroscopic redshift between 1.5$\leqslant z \leqslant$3 and $M>10^{9.4}M_{sun}$. We find that a combination of the asymmetry $A_{MASS}$ and $M_{20, MASS}$ indices measured on the stellar mass maps can efficiently identify real (major) mergers with $\lesssim$20% contamination from clumpy disks in the merger sample. This mass-based classification cannot be reproduced in star-forming galaxies by $H-$band measurements alone, which instead result in a contamination from clumpy galaxies that can be as high as 50%. Moreover, we find that the mass-based classification always results in a lower contamination from clumpy galaxies than an $H-$band classification, regardless of the depth of the imaging used (e.g., CANDELS vs. HUDF).
In this present work, we try to build up a cosmological model using a non-canonical scalar field within the framework of a spatially flat FRW space-time. In this context, we have considered four different parametrizations of the equation of state parameter of the non- canonical scalar field. Under this scenario, an analytical solution for the various cosmological parameters have been found out. It has been found that the deceleration parameter shows a smooth transition from a positive value to some negative value which indicates that the universe was undergoing an early deceleration followed by late time acceleration which is essential for the structure formation of the universe. With these four parametrizations, the future evolution of the models are also discussed. We have also shown that the two models mimic as the concordance $\Lambda$CDM in the near future, whereas the other two models diverge due to the future singularity. Finally, we have studied these theoretical models with the Union2.1 SN Ia dataset.
We present a far-infrared all-sky atlas from a sensitive all-sky survey using the Japanese $AKARI$ satellite. The survey covers $> 99$% of the sky in four photometric bands centred at 65 $\mu$m, 90 $\mu$m, 140 $\mu$m, and 160 $\mu$m with spatial resolutions ranging from 1 to 1.5 arcmin. These data provide crucial information for the investigation and characterisation of the properties of dusty material in the Interstellar Medium (ISM), since significant portion of its energy is emitted between $\sim$50 and 200 $\mu$m. The large-scale distribution of interstellar clouds, their thermal dust temperatures and column densities, can be investigated with the improved spatial resolution compared to earlier all-sky survey observations. In addition to the point source distribution, the large-scale distribution of ISM cirrus emission, and its filamentary structure, are well traced. We have made the first public release of the full-sky data to provide a legacy data set for use by the astronomical community.
In the approach of the effective field theory of modified gravity, we derive the equations of motion for linear perturbations in the presence of a barotropic perfect fluid on the flat isotropic cosmological background. In a simple version of Gleyzes-Langlois-Piazza-Vernizzi (GLPV) theories, which is the minimum extension of Horndeski theories, we show that a slight deviation of the tensor propagation speed squared $c_{\rm t}^2$ from 1 generally leads to the large modification to the propagation speed squared $c_{\rm s}^2$ of a scalar degree of freedom $\phi$. This problem persists whenever the kinetic energy $\rho_X$ of the field $\phi$ is much smaller than the background energy density $\rho_m$, which is the case for most of dark energy models in the asymptotic past. Since the scaling solution characterized by the constant ratio $\rho_X/\rho_m$ is one way out for avoiding such a problem, we study the evolution of perturbations for a scaling dark energy model in the framework of GLPV theories in the Jordan frame. Provided the oscillating mode of scalar perturbations is fine-tuned so that it is initially suppressed, the anisotropic parameter $\eta=-\Phi/\Psi$ between the two gravitational potentials $\Psi$ and $\Phi$ significantly deviates from 1 for $c_{\rm t}^2$ away from 1. For other general initial conditions, the deviation of $c_{\rm t}^2$ from 1 gives rise to the large oscillation of $\Psi$ with the frequency related to $c_{\rm s}^2$. In both cases, the model can leave distinct imprints for the observations of CMB and weak lensing.
We investigate the evolution of the baryon asymmetry of the Universe (BAU) in its symmetric phase before the electroweak phase transition (EWPT) induced by leptogenesis in the hypermagnetic field of an arbitrary structure and with a maximum hypermagnetic helicity density. The novelty of this work is that the BAU has been calculated for a continuous hypermagnetic helicity spectrum. The observed BAU $B_{obs} = 10^{-10}$ that can be in large-scale hypermagnetic fields satisfying the wave number inequality $k \leq k_{max}$ grows with increasing $k_{max}$. We will also show that the initial right-handed electron asymmetry $\xi_{eR}(\eta_0)$ used in our leptogenesis model as a free parameter cannot take too large values, $\xi_{eR}(\eta_0) = 10^{-4}$, because this leads to a negative BAU by the EWPT time. In contrast, a sufficiently small initial right-handed electron asymmetry, $\xi_{eR}(\eta_0)$, provides its further growth and the corresponding BAU growth from zero to some positive value,including the observed $B_{obs} = 10^{-10}$.
We derive the primordial power spectra and spectral indexes of the density fluctuations and gravitational waves in the framework of loop quantum cosmology (LQC) with holonomy and inverse-volume corrections, by using the uniform asymptotic approximation method to its third-order, at which the upper error bounds are $\lesssim 0.15\%$, accurate enough for the current and forthcoming cosmological observations. Then, using the Planck, BAO and SN data we obtain new constraints on quantum gravitational effects from LQC corrections, and find that such effects could be well within the detection of the current and forthcoming experiments.
We search for self tuning solutions to the Einstein-scalar field equations for the simplest class of `Fab-Four' models with constant potentials. We first review the conditions under which self tuning occurs in a cosmological spacetime, and by introducing a small modification to the original theory - introducing the second and third Galileon terms - show how one can obtain de Sitter states where the expansion rate is independent of the vacuum energy. We then consider whether the same self tuning mechanism can persist in a spherically symmetric inhomogeneous spacetime. We show that there are no asymptotically flat solutions to the field equations in which the vacuum energy is screened, other than the trivial one (Minkowski space). We then consider the possibility of constructing Schwarzschild de Sitter spacetimes for the modified Fab Four plus Galileon theory. We argue that the only model that can successfully screen the vacuum energy in both an FLRW and Schwarzschild de Sitter spacetime is one containing `John' $\sim G^{\mu}{}_{\nu} \partial_{\mu}\phi\partial^{\nu}\phi$ and a canonical kinetic term $\sim \partial_{\alpha}\phi \partial^{\alpha}\phi$. This behaviour was first observed in (Babichev&Charmousis,2013). The screening mechanism, which requires redundancy of the scalar field equation in the `vacuum', fails for the `Paul' term in an inhomogeneous spacetime.
The cosmological models called $\alpha$-attractors provide an excellent fit to the latest observational data. Their predictions $n_{s} = 1-2/N$ and $r = 12\alpha/N^{2}$ are very robust with respect to the modifications of the inflaton potential. An intriguing interpretation of $\alpha$-attractors is based on a geometric moduli space with a boundary: a Poincare disk model of a hyperbolic geometry with the radius $\sqrt{3\alpha}$, beautifully represented by the Escher's picture Circle Limit IV. In such models, the amplitude of the gravitational waves is proportional to the square of the radius of the Poincare disk.
Links to: arXiv, form interface, find, astro-ph, recent, 1503, contact, help (Access key information)
The galaxy power spectrum encodes a wealth of information about cosmology and the matter fluctuations. Its unbiased and optimal estimation is therefore of great importance. In this paper we generalise the framework of Feldman et al. (1994) to take into account the fact that galaxies are not simply a Poisson sampling of the underlying dark matter distribution. Besides finite survey-volume effects and flux-limits, our optimal estimation scheme incorporates several of the key tenets of galaxy formation: galaxies form and reside exclusively in dark matter haloes; a given dark matter halo may host several galaxies of various luminosities; galaxies inherit part of their large-scale bias from their host halo. Under these broad assumptions, we prove that the optimal weights "do not" explicitly depend on galaxy luminosity, other than through defining the maximum survey volume and effective galaxy density at a given position. Instead, they depend on the bias associated with the host halo; the first and second factorial moments of the halo occupation distribution; a selection function, which gives the fraction of galaxies that can be observed in a halo of mass M at position r in the survey; and an effective number density of galaxies. If one wishes to reconstruct the matter power spectrum, then, provided the model is correct, this scheme provides the only unbiased estimator. The practical challenges with implementing this approach are also discussed.
We investigate the limits of applicability of the quasi-static approximation in cosmologies featuring general models of dark energy or modified gravity. We show that the quasi-static approximation always breaks down outside of the sound horizon of the dark-energy, rather than the cosmological horizon as is frequently assumed. When the sound speed of dark energy is significantly below that of light, the quasi-static limit is only valid in a limited range of observable scales and this must be taken into account when computing effects on observations in such models. In particular, in the analysis of data from today's weak-lensing and peculiar-velocity surveys, dark energy can be modelled as quasi-static only if the sound speed is larger than order 1% of that of light. In upcoming surveys, such as Euclid, it should only be used when the sound speed exceeds around 10% of the speed of light.
In the Local Group, nearly all of the dwarf galaxies (M_star < 10^9 M_sun) that are satellites within 300 kpc (the virial radius) of the Milky Way (MW) and Andromeda (M31) have quiescent star formation and little-to-no cold gas. This contrasts strongly with comparatively isolated dwarf galaxies, which are almost all actively star-forming and gas-rich. This near dichotomy implies a rapid transformation after falling into the halos of the MW or M31. We combine the observed quiescent fractions for satellites of the MW and M31 with the infall times of satellites from the ELVIS suite of cosmological simulations to determine the typical timescales over which environmental processes within the MW/M31 halos remove gas and quench star formation in low-mass satellite galaxies. The quenching timescales for satellites with M_star < 10^8 M_sun are short, < 2 Gyr, and quenching is more rapid at lower M_star. These quenching timescales can be 1 - 2 Gyr longer if environmental preprocessing in lower-mass groups prior to MW/M31 infall is important. We compare with quenching timescales for more massive satellites from previous works and synthesize the nature of satellite quenching across the observable range of M_star = 10^{3-11} M_sun. The environmental quenching timescale increases rapidly with satellite M_star, peaking at ~9.5 Gyr for M_star ~ 10^9 M_sun, and rapidly decreases at higher M_star to < 5 Gyr at M_star > 5x10^9 M_sun. Overall, galaxies with M_star ~ 10^9 M_sun, similar to the Magellanic Clouds, exhibit the longest quenching timescales, regardless of environmental or internal mechanisms.
The vast majority of dwarf satellites orbiting the Milky Way and M31 are quenched, while comparable galaxies in the field are gas-rich and star-forming. Assuming that this dichotomy is driven by environmental quenching, we use the ELVIS suite of N-body simulations to constrain the characteristic timescale upon which satellites must quench following infall into the virial volumes of their hosts. The high satellite quenched fraction observed in the Local Group demands an extremely short quenching timescale (~ 2 Gyr) for dwarf satellites in the mass range Mstar ~ 10^6-10^8 Msun. This quenching timescale is significantly shorter than that required to explain the quenched fraction of more massive satellites (~ 8 Gyr), both in the Local Group and in more massive host halos, suggesting a dramatic change in the dominant satellite quenching mechanism at Mstar < 10^8 Msun. Combining our work with the results of complementary analyses in the literature, we conclude that the suppression of star formation in massive satellites (Mstar ~ 10^8 - 10^11 Msun) is broadly consistent with being driven by starvation, such that the satellite quenching timescale corresponds to the cold gas depletion time. Below a critical stellar mass scale of ~ 10^8 Msun, however, the required quenching times are much shorter than the expected cold gas depletion times. Instead, quenching must act on a timescale comparable to the dynamical time of the host halo. We show that ram-pressure stripping can naturally explain this behavior, with the critical mass (of Mstar ~ 10^8 Msun) corresponding to halos with gravitational restoring forces that are too weak to overcome the drag force encountered when moving through an extended, hot circumgalactic medium.
We derive the particle asymmetry due to inflationary baryogenesis involving a complex inflaton, obtaining a different result to that in the literature. While asymmetries are found to be significantly smaller than previously calculated, in certain parameter regions baryogenesis can still be achieved.
We consider a minimally coupled scalar field with a monomial potential and a perfect fluid in flat FLRW cosmology. We apply local and global dynamical systems techniques to a new three-dimensional dynamical systems reformulation of the field equations on a compact state space. This leads to a visual global description of the solution space and asymptotic behavior. At late times we employ averaging techniques to prove statements about how the relationship between the equation of state of the fluid and the monomial exponent of the scalar field affects asymptotic source dominance and asymptotic manifest self-similarity breaking. We also situate the `attractor' solution in the three-dimensional state space and show that it corresponds to the one-dimensional unstable center manifold of a de Sitter fixed point, located on an unphysical boundary associated with the dynamics at early times. By deriving a center manifold expansion we obtain approximate expressions for the attractor solution. We subsequently improve the accuracy and range of the approximation by means of Pad\'e approximants and compare with the slow-roll approximation.
The next-to-minimal supersymmetric standard model predicts the formation of domain walls due to the spontaneous breaking of the discrete $Z_3$-symmetry at the electroweak phase transition, and they collapse before the epoch of big bang nucleosynthesis if there exists a small bias term in the potential which explicitly breaks the discrete symmetry. Signatures of gravitational waves produced from these unstable domain walls are estimated and their parameter dependence is investigated. It is shown that the amplitude of gravitational waves becomes generically large in the decoupling limit, and that their frequency is low enough to be probed in future pulsar timing observations.
We consider the motion of classical spinning test particles in Schwarzschild and Kerr metrics and investigate innermost stable circular orbits (ISCO). The main goal of this work is to find analytically the small-spin corrections for the parameters of ISCO (radius, total angular momentum, energy) of spinning test particles in the case of vectors of black hole spin, particle spin and orbital angular momentum being collinear to each other. We analytically derive the small-spin linear corrections for arbitrary Kerr parameter $a$. The cases of Schwarzschild, slowly rotating and extreme Kerr black hole are considered in details. For a slowly rotating black hole the ISCO parameters are obtained up to quadratic in $a$ and particle's spin $s$ terms. From the formulae obtained it is seen that the spin-orbital coupling has attractive character when spin and angular momentum are parallel and repulsive when they are antiparallel. For the case of the extreme Kerr black hole with co-rotating particle we succeed to find the exact (on spin) analytical solution for the limiting ISCO parameters. It has been shown that the limiting value of ISCO radius does not depend on the particle's spin. We have also considered circular orbits of arbitrary radius and have found small-spin linear corrections for the total angular momentum and energy at given radius. System of equations for numerical calculation of ISCO parameters for arbitrary $a$ and $s$ is also explicitly written.
Links to: arXiv, form interface, find, astro-ph, recent, 1503, contact, help (Access key information)
We investigate the recent claim of 'photon underproduction crisis' by Kollmeier et al. (2014) which suggests that the known sources of ultra-violet (UV) radiation may not be sufficient to generate the inferred hydrogen photoionization rate ($\Gamma_{\rm HI}$) in the low redshift inter-galactic medium. Using the updated QSO emissivities from the recent studies and our radiative transfer code developed to estimate the UV background, we show that the QSO contribution to $\Gamma_{\rm HI}$ is higher by a factor ~2 as compared to the previous estimates. Using self-consistently computed combinations of star formation rate density and dust attenuation, we show that a typical UV escape fraction of 4% from star forming galaxies should be sufficient to explain the inferred $\Gamma_{\rm HI}$ by Kollmeier et al. (2014). Interestingly, we find that the contribution from QSOs alone can explain the recently inferred $\Gamma_{\rm HI}$ by Shull et al. (2015) which used the same observational data but different simulation. Therefore, we conclude that the crisis is not as severe as it was perceived before and there seems no need to look for alternate explanations such as low luminosity hidden QSOs or decaying dark matter particles.
We present an initial study of the mass and evolutionary state of a massive and distant cluster, RCS2 J232727.6-020437. This cluster, at z=0.6986, is the richest cluster discovered in the RCS2 project. The mass measurements presented in this paper are derived from all possible mass proxies: X-ray measurements, weak-lensing shear, strong lensing, Sunyaev Zel'dovich effect decrement, the velocity distribution of cluster member galaxies, and galaxy richness. While each of these observables probe the mass of the cluster at a different radius, they all indicate that RCS2 J232727.6-020437 is among the most massive clusters at this redshift, with an estimated mass of M_200 ~3 x10^15 h^-1 Msun. In this paper, we demonstrate that the various observables are all reasonably consistent with each other to within their uncertainties. RCS2 J232727.6-020437 appears to be well relaxed -- with circular and concentric X-ray isophotes, with a cool core, and no indication of significant substructure in extensive galaxy velocity data.
We discuss the conditions to satisfy the Higuchi bound and to avoid gradient instabilities in the scalar sector for cosmological solutions in singly coupled bimetric gravity theories. We find that in expanding universes the ratio of the scale factors of the reference and observable metric has to increase at all times. This automatically implies a ghost-free helicity-2 sector and enforces a phantom Dark Energy. Furthermore, the condition for the absence of gradient instabilities in the scalar sector will be analyzed. Finally, we discuss whether cosmological solutions, including exotic evolutions like bouncing cosmologies, can exist, in which both the Higuchi ghost and scalar instabilities are absent at all times.
Discovering the mass of neutrinos is a principle goal in high energy physics and cosmology. In addition to cosmological measurements based on two-point statistics, the neutrino mass can also be estimated by observations of neutrino wakes resulting from the relative motion between dark matter and neutrinos. Such a detection relies on an accurate reconstruction of the dark matter-neutrino relative velocity which is affected by non-linear structure growth and galaxy bias. We investigate our ability to reconstruct this relative velocity using large N-body simulations where we evolve neutrinos as distinct particles alongside the dark matter. We find that the dark matter velocity power spectrum is overpredicted by linear theory whereas the neutrino velocity power spectrum is underpredicted. The magnitude of the relative velocity observed in the simulations is found to be lower than what is predicted in linear theory. Since neither the dark matter nor the neutrino velocity fields are directly observable from galaxy or 21 cm surveys, we test the accuracy of a reconstruction algorithm based on halo density fields and linear theory. Assuming prior knowledge of the halo bias, we find that the reconstructed relative velocities are highly correlated with the simulated ones with correlation coefficients of 0.94, 0.93, 0.91 and 0.88 for neutrinos of mass 0.05, 0.1, 0.2 and 0.4 eV. We confirm that the relative velocity field reconstructed from large scale structure observations such as galaxy or 21 cm surveys can be accurate in direction and, with appropriate scaling, magnitude.
In the context of single field inflation, models with a quadratic potential and models with a natural potential with subplanckian decay constant are in tension with the Planck data. We show that, when embedded in a two-field model with an additional super massive field, they can become consistent with observations. Our results follow if the inflaton is the phase of a complex field (or an angular variable) protected by a mildly broken U(1) symmetry, and the radial component, whose mass is much greater than the Hubble scale, is stabilized at subplanckian values. The presence of the super massive field, besides modifying the effective single field potential, causes a reduction in the speed of sound of the inflaton fluctuations, which drives the prediction for the primordial spectrum towards the allowed experimental values. We discuss these effects also for the linear potential, and show that this model increases its agreement with data as well
We set conservative, robust constraints on the annihilation and decay of dark matter into various Standard Model final states under various assumptions about the distribution of the dark matter in the Milky Way halo. We use the inclusive photon spectrum observed by the Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope through its main instrument, the Large-Area Telescope (LAT). We use simulated data to first find the "optimal" regions of interest in the gamma-ray sky, where the expected dark matter signal is largest compared with the expected astrophysical foregrounds. We then require the predicted dark matter signal to be less than the observed photon counts in the a priori optimal regions. This yields a very conservative constraint as we do not attempt to model or subtract astrophysical foregrounds. The resulting limits are competitive with other existing limits, and, for some final states with cuspy dark-matter distributions in the Galactic Center region, disfavor the typical cross section required during freeze-out for a weakly interacting massive particle (WIMP) to obtain the observed relic abundance.
We study moduli stabilization in combination with inflation in heterotic orbifold compactifications in the light of a large Hubble scale and the favored tensor-to-scalar ratio $r \approx 0.05$. To account for a trans-Planckian field range we implement aligned natural inflation. Although there is only one universal axion in heterotic constructions, further axions from the geometric moduli can be used for alignment and inflation. We argue that such an alignment is rather generic on orbifolds, since all non-perturbative terms are determined by modular weights of the involved fields and the Dedekind $\eta$ function. We present two setups inspired by the mini-landscape models of the $\mathbb Z_{6-\text{II}}$ orbifold which realize aligned inflation and stabilization of the relevant moduli. One has a supersymmetric vacuum after inflation, while the other includes a gaugino condensate which breaks supersymmetry at a high scale.
We study the left-right symmetric extensions of the Standard Model (LRSM) and point out that the discovery of a right-handed charged gauge boson $W_R^\pm$ with mass in the TeV range will have profound consequences for leptogenesis. We consider the LRSM with both triplet and doublet Higgs scalars, and in both the cases we find that if the $W_R^\pm$ with mass of around a few TeV is found, for example through a signal of two leptons and two jets that has been reported by CMS to have a 2.8$\sigma$ local excess over the Standard Model background at the LHC, then it will rule out all possibilities of leptogenesis. In that case, the baryon asymmetry of the universe has to be generated after the electroweak phase transition and from the baryon number violation that can give rise to neutron-antineutron oscillation or ($B - L$) violating proton decay.
Many modified gravity theories are under consideration in cosmology as the source of the accelerated expansion of the universe and linear perturbation theory, valid on the largest scales, has been examined in many of these models. However, smaller non-linear scales offer a richer phenomenology with which to constrain modified gravity theories. Here, we consider the Hu-Sawicki form of $f(R)$ gravity and apply the post-Friedmann approach to derive the leading order equations for non-linear scales, i.e. the equations valid in the Newtonian-like regime. We reproduce the standard equations for the scalar field, gravitational slip and the modified Poisson equation in a coherent framework. In addition, we derive the equation for the leading order correction to the Newtonian regime, the vector potential. We measure this vector potential from $f(R)$ N-body simulations at redshift zero and one, for two values of the $f_{R_0}$ parameter. We find that the vector potential at redshift zero in $f(R)$ gravity can be close to 50\% larger than in GR on small scales for $|f_{R_0}|=1.289\times10^{-5}$, although this is less for larger scales, earlier times and smaller values of the $f_{R_0}$ parameter. Similarly to in GR, the small amplitude of this vector potential suggests that the Newtonian approximation is highly accurate for $f(R)$ gravity, and also that the non-linear cosmological behaviour of $f(R)$ gravity can be completely described by just the scalar potentials and the $f(R)$ field.
f(R) gravity is one of the simplest generalizations of general relativity, which may explain accelerated cosmic expansion without introducing a cosmological constant. Transformed into the Einstein frame, a new scalar degree of freedom appears and it couples with matter fields. In order for f(R) theories to pass the local tests of general relativity, it has been known that the chameleon mechanism with a so-called thin-shell solution must operate. If the thin-shell constraint is applied to a cosmological situation, it has been claimed that the equation of state parameter of dark energy w must be extremely close to -1. We argue this is due to incorrect use of the Poisson's equation which is valid only in the static case. By solving the correct Klein-Gordon equation perturbatively, we show that a thin-shell solution exists even if w deviates from -1 appreciably.
A non-conformally invariant coupling between the inflaton and the photon in the minimal Lorentz-violating standard model extension is analyzed. For specific forms of the Lorentz-violating background tensor, the strong coupling and backreaction problems of magnetogenesis in de Sitter inflation with scale $\sim 10^{16}$GeV are evaded, the electromagnetic-induced primordial spectra of (Gaussian and non-Gaussian) scalar and tensor curvature perturbations are compatible with cosmic microwave background observations, and the inflation-produced magnetic field directly accounts for cosmic magnetic fields.
We study the constraints on dark energy equation of state $\omega^{X}$ and the deceleration parameter $q$ from the recent observational data including Hubble data and the cosmic microwave background (CMB) radiation by using a model-independent deceleration parameter $q(z)=1/2-a/(1+z)^b$ and dark energy equation of state $\omega^{X}=\omega_{0}+\omega_{1}z/(1+z)$ in the scope of anisotropic Bianchi type I space-time. For the cases of Hubble dataset, CMB data, and their combination, our results indicate that the constraints on transition redshift $z_{\ast}$ are $0.62^{+1.45}_{-0.56}$, $0.34^{+0.13}_{-0.06}$, and $0.60^{+0.20}_{-0.10}$ respectively.
We present evolution of galaxy effective radius r_e obtained from the HST samples of ~190,000 galaxies at z=0-10. Our HST samples consist of 176,152 photo-z galaxies at z=0-6 from the 3D-HST+CANDELS catalogue and 10,454 LBGs at z=4-10 identified in CANDELS, HUDF09/12, and HFF parallel fields, providing the largest data set to date for galaxy size evolution studies. We derive r_e with the same technique over the wide-redshift range of z=0-10, evaluating the optical-to-UV morphological K-correction and the selection bias of photo-z galaxies+LBGs as well as the cosmological surface brightness dimming effect. We find that r_e values at a given luminosity significantly decrease towards high-z, regardless of statistics choices. For star-forming galaxies, there is no evolution of the power-law slope of the size-luminosity relation and the median Sersic index (n~1.5). Moreover, the r_e-distribution is well represented by log-normal functions whose standard deviation \sigma_{\ln{r_e}} does not show significant evolution within the range of \sigma_{\ln{r_e}}~0.45-0.75. We calculate the stellar-to-halo size ratio from our r_e measurements and the dark-matter halo masses estimated from the abundance matching study, and obtain a nearly constant value of r_e/r_vir=1.0-3.5% at z=0-8. The combination of the r_e-distribution shape+standard deviation, the constant r_e/r_vir, and n~1.5 suggests a picture that typical high-z star-forming galaxies have disk-like stellar components in a sense of dynamics and morphology over cosmic time of z~0-6. If high-z star-forming galaxies are truly dominated by disks, the r_e/r_vir value and the disk formation model indicate that the specific angular momentum of the disk normalized by the host halo is j_d/m_d=0.5-1. These are statistical results for galaxies' major stellar components, and the detailed study of clumpy sub-components is presented in the paper II.
Links to: arXiv, form interface, find, astro-ph, recent, 1503, contact, help (Access key information)
Halo Abundance Matching has been used to construct a one-parameter mapping between galaxies and dark matter haloes by assuming that halo mass and galaxy luminosity (or stellar mass) are monotonically related. While this approach has been reasonably successful, it is known that galaxies must be described by at least two parameters, as can be seen from the two-parameter Fundamental Plane on which massive early-type galaxies lie. In this paper, we derive a connection between initial dark matter density perturbations in the early universe and present-day virialized dark matter haloes by assuming simple spherical collapse combined with conservation of mass and energy. We find that $z = 0$ halo concentration, or alternatively the inner slope of the halo density profile $\alpha$, is monotonically and positively correlated with the collapse redshift of the halo. This is qualitatively similar to the findings of some previous works based on numerical simulations, with which we compare our results. We then describe how the halo mass and concentration (or inner slope $\alpha$) can be used as two halo parameters in combination with two parameters of early-type galaxies to create an improved abundance matching scheme.
Here we present a simple, parameter-free, non-perturbative algorithm that gives low-redshift cosmological particle realizations accurate to few-Megaparsec scales, called muscle (MUltiscale Spherical ColLapse Evolution). It has virtually the same cost as producing N-body-simulation initial conditions, since it works with the 'stretch' parameter {\psi}, the Lagrangian divergence of the displacement field. It promises to be useful in quickly producing mock catalogs, and to simplify computationally intensive reconstructions of galaxy surveys. muscle applies a spherical-collapse prescription on multiple Gaussian-smoothed scales. It achieves higher accuracy than perturbative schemes (Zel'dovich and 2LPT), and, by including the void-in-cloud process (voids in large-scale collapsing regions), solves problems with a single-scale spherical-collapse scheme. Additionally, we show the behavior of {\psi} for different morphologies (voids, walls, filaments, and haloes). A Python code to produce these realizations is available at this http URL
Power suppression of the cosmic microwave background on the largest observable scales could provide valuable clues about the particle physics underlying inflation. Here we consider the prospect of power suppression in the context of the multifield landscape. Based on the assumption that our observable universe emerges from a tunnelling event and that the relevant features originate purely from inflationary dynamics, we find that the power spectrum not only contains information on single-field dynamics, but also places strong con- straints on all scalar fields present in the theory. We find that the simplest single-field models giving rise to power suppression do not generalise to multifield models in a straightforward way, as the resulting superhorizon evolution of the curvature perturbation tends to erase any power suppression present at horizon crossing. On the other hand, multifield effects do present a means of generating power suppression which to our knowledge has so far not been considered. We propose a mechanism to illustrate this, which we dub flume inflation.
Collisions between galaxy clusters provide a test of the non-gravitational forces acting on dark matter. Dark matter's lack of deceleration in the `bullet cluster collision' constrained its self-interaction cross-section \sigma_DM/m < 1.25cm2/g (68% confidence limit) for long-ranged forces. Using the Chandra and Hubble Space Telescopes we have now observed 72 collisions, including both `major' and `minor' mergers. Combining these measurements statistically, we detect the existence of dark mass at 7.6\sigma significance. The position of the dark mass has remained closely aligned within 5.8+/-8.2 kpc of associated stars: implying a self-interaction cross-section \sigma_DM/m < 0.47 cm2/g (95% CL) and disfavoring some proposed extensions to the standard model.
We show that the number of observed voids in galaxy redshift surveys is a sensitive function of the equation of state of dark energy. Using the Fisher matrix formalism we find the error ellipses in the $w_0-w_a$ plane when the equation of state of dark energy is assumed to be of the form $w_{CPL}(z)=w_0 +w_a z/(1+z)$. We forecast the number of voids to be observed with the ESA Euclid satellite and the NASA WFIRST mission, taking into account updated details of the surveys to reach accurate estimates of their power. The theoretical model for the forecast of the number of voids is based on matches between abundances in simulations and the analytical prediction. To take into account the uncertainties within the model, we marginalize over its free parameters when calculating the Fisher matrices. The addition of the void abundance constraints to the data from Planck, HST and supernova survey data noticeably tighten the $w_0-w_a$ parameter space. We thus quantify the improvement in the constraints due to the use of voids and demonstrate that the void abundance is a sensitive new probe for the dark energy equation of state.
We present Chandra and XMM-Newton observations of PLCK G036.7+14.9 from the Chandra-Planck Legacy Program. The high resolution X-ray observations reveal two close subclusters, G036N and G036S, which were not resolved by previous ROSAT, optical, or recent Planck observations. We perform detailed imaging and spectral analyses and use a simplified model to study the kinematics of this system. The basic picture is that PLCK G036.7+14.9 is undergoing a major merger (mass ratio close to unity) between the two massive subclusters, with the merger largely along the line-of-sight and probably at an early stage. G036N hosts a small, moderate cool-core, while G036S has at most a very weak cool-core in the central 40 kpc region. The difference in core cooling times is unlikely to be caused by the ongoing merger disrupting a pre-existing cool-core in G036S. G036N also hosts an unresolved radio source in the center, which may be heating the gas if the radio source is extended. The Planck derived mass is higher than the X-ray measured mass of either subcluster, but is lower than the X-ray measured mass of the whole cluster, due to the fact that Planck does not resolve PLCK G036.7+14.9 into subclusters and interprets it as a single cluster. This mass discrepancy could induce significant bias to the mass function if such previously unresolved systems are common in the Planck cluster sample. High resolution X-ray observations are necessary to identify the fraction of such systems and correct such a bias for the purpose of precision cosmological studies.
It has recently been shown that second-order corrections to the background distance-redshift relation can build up significantly at large redshifts, due to an aggregation of gravitational lensing events. This shifts the expectation value of the distance to the CMB by 1%. In this paper we show that this shift is already properly accounted for in standard CMB analyses. We clarify the role that the distance to the CMB plays in the presence of second-order lensing corrections.
Bimetric theory describes gravitational interactions in the presence of an extra spin-2 field. Previous work has suggested that its cosmological solutions are generically plagued by instabilities. We show that by taking the Planck mass for the second metric, $M_f$, to be small, these instabilities can be pushed back to unobservably early times. In this limit, the theory approaches general relativity with an effective cosmological constant which is, remarkably, determined by the spin-2 interaction scale. This provides a late-time expansion history which is extremely close to $\Lambda$CDM, but with a technically-natural value for the cosmological constant. We find $M_f$ should be no larger than the electroweak scale in order for cosmological perturbations to be stable by big-bang nucleosynthesis.
Over the past 15 years, examples of exotic radio-quiet quasars with intrinsically weak or absent broad emission line regions (BELRs) have emerged from large-scale spectroscopic sky surveys. Here, we present spectroscopy of seven such weak emission line quasars (WLQs) at moderate redshifts (z=1.4-1.7) using the X-shooter spectrograph, which provides simultaneous optical and near-infrared spectroscopy covering the rest-frame ultraviolet through optical. These new observations effectively double the number of WLQs with spectroscopy in the optical rest-frame, and they allow us to compare the strengths of (weak) high-ionization emission lines (e.g., CIV) to low-ionization lines (e.g., MgII, Hb, Ha) in individual objects. We detect broad Hb and Ha emission in all objects, and these lines are generally toward the weaker end of the distribution expected for typical quasars (e.g., Hb has rest-frame equivalent widths ranging from 15-40 Ang.). However, these low-ionization lines are not exceptionally weak, as is the case for high-ionization lines in WLQs. The X-shooter spectra also display relatively strong optical FeII emission, Hb FWHM <4000 km/s, and significant CIV blueshifts (1000-5500 km/s) relative to the systemic redshift; two spectra also show elevated ultraviolet FeII emission, and an outflowing component to their (weak) MgII emission lines. These properties suggest that WLQs are exotic versions of "wind-dominated" quasars. Their BELRs either have unusual high-ionization components, or their BELRs are in an atypical photoionization state because of an unusually soft continuum.
We investigate the relationship between the rest-frame equivalent width (EW) of the C IV \lambda1549 broad-emission line, monochromatic luminosity at rest-frame 5100 A, and the Hbeta-based Eddington ratio in a sample of 99 ordinary quasars across the widest possible ranges of redshift (0 < z < 3.5) and bolometric luminosity (10^{44} <~ L <~ 10^{48} erg s^{-1}). We find that EW(C IV) is primarily anti-correlated with the Eddington ratio, a relation we refer to as a modified Baldwin effect (MBE), an extension of the result previously obtained for quasars at z < 0.5. Based on the MBE, weak emission line quasars (WLQs), typically showing EW(C IV) <~ 10 A, are expected to have extremely high Eddington ratios. By selecting all WLQs with archival Hbeta and C IV spectroscopic data, nine sources in total, we find that their Hbeta-based Eddington ratios are typical of ordinary quasars with similar redshifts and luminosities. Four of these WLQs can be accommodated by the MBE, but the other five deviate significantly from this relation, at the >~3 \sigma\ level, by exhibiting C IV lines much weaker than predicted from their Hbeta-based Eddington ratios. Assuming the supermassive black-hole masses in all quasars can be determined reliably using the single-epoch Hbeta-method, our results indicate that EW(C IV) cannot depend solely on the Eddington ratio. We briefly discuss a strategy for further investigation into the roles that basic physical properties play in controlling the relative strengths of broad-emission lines in quasars.
In this paper we present a model for accelerated expansion of the universe, both during inflation and the present stage of the expansion, from four dimensional $\mathcal{N}=1$ supergravity. We evaluate the tensor-to-scalar ratio ($r\approx 0.00034$), the scalar spectral index ($n_s\approx 0.970$) and the running spetral index ($dn_s/dk\approx -6\times10^{-5}$), and we notice that these parameters are in agreement with Planck+WP+lensing data and with BICEP2/Keck and Planck joint analysis, at $95\%$ CL. The number of e-folds is $50$ or higher. The reheating period has an associated temperature $T_R\sim10^{12}$ Gev, which agrees with the one required by thermal leptogenesis. Regarding the scalar field as dark energy, the autonomous system for the scalar field in the presence of a barotropic fluid provides a stable fixed point that leads to a late-time accelerated expansion of the universe, with an equation of state that mimics the cosmological constant ($w_\Phi\approx -0.997$).
Scalar-tensor (ST) gravity is considered in the case where the scalar is an external field. We show that General Relativity (GR) and standard ST gravity are particular cases of the External Scalar-Tensor (EST) gravity. It is shown with a particular cosmological example that it is possible to join a part of a GR solution to a part of an ST one such that the complete solution neither belongs to GR nor to ST, but fully satisfies the EST field equations. We argue that external fields may effectively work as a type of screening mechanism for ST theories.
We present observations of pseudobulges in S0 and spiral galaxies using imaging data taken with the Spitzer Infra-Red Array Camera. We have used 2-d bulge-disk-bar decomposition to determine structural parameters of 185 S0 galaxies and 31 nearby spiral galaxies. Using the Sersic index and the position on the Kormendy diagram to classify their bulges as either classical or pseudo, we find that 25 S0s (14%) and 24 spirals (77%) host pseudoblges. The fraction of pseudobulges we find in spiral galaxies is consistent with previous results obtained with optical data and show that the evolution of a large fraction of spirals is governed by secular processes rather than by major mergers. We find that the bulge effective radius is correlated with the disk scale length for pseudobulges of S0s and spirals, as expected for secular formation of bulges from disk instabilities, though the disks in S0s are significantly smaller than those in spirals. We show that early-type pseudobulge hosting spirals can transform to pseudobulge hosting S0s by simple gas stripping. However, simple gas stripping mechanism is not sufficient to transform the late-type pseudobulge hosting spirals into pseudobulge hosting S0s.
The role of disk instabilities, such as bars and spiral arms, and the associated resonances, in growing bulges in the inner regions of disk galaxies have long been studied in the low-redshift nearby Universe. There it has long been probed observationally, in particular through peanut-shaped bulges. This secular growth of bulges in modern disk galaxies is driven by weak, non-axisymmetric instabilities: it mostly produces pseudo-bulges at slow rates and with long star-formation timescales. Disk instabilities at high redshift (z>1) in moderate-mass to massive galaxies (10^10 to a few 10^11 Msun of stars) are very different from those found in modern spiral galaxies. High-redshift disks are globally unstable and fragment into giant clumps containing 10^8-10^9 Msun of gas and stars each, which results in highly irregular galaxy morphologies. The clumps and other features associated to the violent instability drive disk evolution and bulge growth through various mechanisms, on short timescales. The giant clumps can migrate inward and coalesce into the bulge in a few 10^8 yr. The instability in the very turbulent media drives intense gas inflows toward the bulge and nuclear region. Thick disks and supermassive black holes can grow concurrently as a result of the violent instability. This chapter reviews the properties of high-redshift disk instabilities, the evolution of giant clumps and other features associated to the instability, and the resulting growth of bulges and associated sub-galactic components.
GRB 060614 was a unique burst straddling both long and short duration gamma-ray bursts and its physical origin is still debated. Here we re-examine the afterglow data of GRB 060614 and find a significant F814W-band excess at $t\sim 13.6$ day after the burst observed by the {\it Hubble Space Telescope (HST)}. This corresponds to an extremely-low luminosity $\sim 3\times 10^{40}~{\rm erg~s^{-1}}$. The excess component has a very red spectrum and a rapid decline, both unexpected within the present theoretical framework of afterglow. We examine two possible sources of this signal$-$a very weak supernova and a Li-Paczynski Macronova/kilonova. We find that the observed signal is incompatible with a weak supernova. However, it is compatible with the ejection of $\sim 0.03-0.1~M_\odot$ of $r-$process material. If this interpretation is correct GRB 060614 arose from a compact binary (most likely a black hole$-$neutron star but also possibly a double neutron star) merger.
The CRESST experiment (Cryogenic Rare Event Search with Superconducting
Thermometers) searches for dark matter via the phonon and light signal of
elastic scattering processes in scintillating crystals. The discrimination
between a possible dark matter signal and background requires good energy
resolution of the light detector, therefore a high light yield is important.
In this article, we present a method for understanding the light yield
measured with entire detector modules in terms of the efficiencies of light
production and detection. Based on data taken during a dark matter search
phase, it considers the entire process of conversion of deposited energy into
scintillation light as well as transport and collection of the light that occur
in a detector module. We can confirm the results by using a cross-check method
with different systematic uncertainties.
We found that with the detectors operated in CRESST-II phase 1, about 20% of
the produced scintillation light is detected. A part of the light loss is
likely caused by light absorption creating meta-stable excitations in the
scintillating crystals. We also found that, consistent with the relatively low
detection efficiency, an additional light detector increases the amount of
detected light within an otherwise unmodified detector module.
Links to: arXiv, form interface, find, astro-ph, recent, 1503, contact, help (Access key information)