I discuss constraints on the power spectrum of primordial tensor perturbations from a combination of Cosmic Microwave Background (CMB) measurements and the gravitational wave direct detection experiments LIGO/Virgo and DECIGO. There are two main points: (1) Inflation predicts an approximately power-law form for the primordial tensor spectrum, but makes no prediction for its amplitude. Given that neither Planck nor LIGO/Virgo has actually detected primordial tensor modes, it is trivially true that no model-independent constraint on the slope of the tensor power spectrum is possible with current data. (2) CMB and LIGO/Virgo scales differ by more than 19 orders of magnitude, and 16 for DECIGO. I show that a power-law extrapolation from CMB to direct detection frequencies overestimates the amplitude of primordial tensor modes by as much as two orders of magnitude relative to an ensemble of realistic single-field inflation models. Moreover, the primordial tensor amplitude at direct detection scales is mostly uncorrelated with the tensor spectral index at CMB scales, and any constraint is strongly dependent on the specific form of the inflationary potential.
Constraints on the topology of the Universe derived from the 7-year WMAP CMB data and prospects of constraining the topology using CMB polarisation maps
We present a Bayesian parametric component separation method for polarised microwave sky maps. We solve jointly for the primary cosmic microwave background (CMB) signal and the main Galactic polarised foreground components. For the latter, we consider electron-synchrotron radiation and thermal dust emission, modelled in frequency as a power law and a modified blackbody respectively. We account for inter-pixel correlations in the noise covariance matrices of the input maps and introduce a spatial correlation length in the prior matrices for the spectral indices beta. We apply our method to low-…
Using Planck polarization data, we search for and constrain spatial variations of the polarized dust foreground for cosmic microwave background (CMB) observations, specifically in its spectral index, $β_d$. Failure to account for such variations will cause errors in the foreground cleaning that propagate into errors on cosmological parameter recovery from the cleaned CMB map. It is unclear how robust prior studies of the Planck data which constrained $β_d$ variations are due to challenges with noise modeling, residual systematics, and priors. To clarify constraints on $β_d$ and its variation, …
Delta Gravity is a gravitational model based on an extension of General Relativity given by a new symmetry called $\tildeδ$. In this model, new matter fields are added to the original matter fields, motivated by the additional symmetry. We call them $\tildeδ$ matter fields. This model predicts an accelerating Universe without the need to introduce a cosmological constant. In this work, we study the Delta Gravity prediction about the scalar CMB TT power spectrum using an analytical hydrodynamical approach. To fit the Planck satellite's data with the DG model, we used a Markov Chain Monte Carlo …
We perform a thorough examination of the neutrino mass ($M_ν$) constraints achievable by combining future spectroscopic galaxy surveys with cosmic microwave background (CMB) experiments, focusing on the contribution of CMB lensing and galaxy-CMB lensing. CMB lensing can help by breaking the $M_ν$-curvature degeneracy when combined with baryon acoustic oscillation (BAO)-only measurements, but we demonstrate this combination wastes a great deal of constraining power, as the broadband shape of the power spectrum contributes significantly to constraints. We also expand on previous work to demonstr…
We present robust constraints on the stochastic gravitational waves (GWs) at Mpc scales from the cosmic microwave background (CMB) data. CMB constraints on GWs are usually characterized as the tensor-to-scalar ratio, assuming specifically a power-law form of the primordial spectrum, and are obtained from the angular spectra of CMB. Here, we relax the assumption of the power-law form, and consider to what extent one can constrain a monochromatic GW at shorter wavelengths. Previously, such a constraint has been derived at the wavelengths larger than the resolution scale of the CMB measurements, …
We use six tilted spatially-flat and untilted non-flat dark energy cosmological models in analyses of South Pole Telescope polarization (SPTpol) cosmic microwave background (CMB) data, alone and in combination with Planck 2015 CMB data and non-CMB data, namely, the Pantheon Type Ia supernovae apparent magnitudes, a collection of baryon acoustic oscillation data points, Hubble parameter measurements, and growth rates. Although the cosmological models that best-fit the Planck CMB and non-CMB data do not provide good fits to the SPTpol data, with the $χ^2$'s exceeding the expected value, given th…
We demonstrate how to obtain optimal constraints on a primordial gravitational wave component in lensed Cosmic Microwave Background (CMB) data under ideal conditions. We first derive an estimator of the tensor-to-scalar ratio, $r$, by using an error-controlled close approximation to the exact posterior, under the assumption of Gaussian primordial CMB and lensing deflection potential. This combines fast internal iterative lensing reconstruction with optimal recovery of the unlensed CMB. We evaluate its performance on simulated low-noise polarization data targeted at the recombination peak. We c…
The statistics of extremal points in the cosmic microwave background (CMB) temperature (hot and cold spots) have been well explored in the literature, and have been used to constrain models of the early Universe. Here, we extend the study of critical points in the CMB to the set that remains after removing extrema, namely the saddle points. We perform stacks of temperature and polarization about temperature saddle points in simulations of the CMB, as well as in data from the Planck satellite. We then compute the theoretical profile of saddle-point stacks, given the underlying power spectra of …
Although both early and late-time modifications of the $Λ$CDM model have been proposed to address the Hubble tension, compelling arguments suggest that for a solution to be successful it needs to modify the expansion history of the universe prior to recombination. This greatly increases the importance of precise CMB observations, and in this letter we make the argument for CMB spectral distortions, highlighting their potential role in constraining models that introduce significant shifts in the standard $Λ$CDM parameters, such as the scalar spectral index, in attempt to solve the Hubble tensio…
Polarized Galactic synchrotron emission is an undesirable foreground for cosmic microwave background (CMB) experiments observing at frequencies $< 150$ GHz. We perform a combined analysis of observational data at 1.4, 2.3, 23, 30 and 33 GHz to quantify the spatial variation of the polarized synchrotron spectral index, $β^{pol}$, on $\sim3.5^\circ$ scales. We compare results from different data combinations to address limitations and inconsistencies present in these public data, and form a composite map of $β^{pol}$. Data quality masking leaves 44% sky coverage (73% for $|b|> 45^\circ$). Genera…
The merger rate of primordial black holes depends on their initial clustering. In the absence of primordial non-Gaussianity correlating short and large-scales, primordial black holes are distributed à la Poisson at the time of their formation. However, primordial non-Gaussianity of the local-type may correlate primordial black holes on large-scales. We show that future experiments looking for CMB $μ$-distortion would test the hypothesis of initial primordial black hole clustering induced by local non-Gaussianity, while existing limits already show that significant non-Gaussianity is necessary …
Heliosheath Synchrotron Radiation As A Possible Source For The Arcade 2 CMB Distortions
这份简短的笔记推测，最近报道的残留CMB信号[Seiffert et al 2009]可能起源于太阳的日鞘。导出了一个与Seiffert等人的拟合函数具有相同幂律形式的温度谱函数。特别地，隐含了+2的谱指数。厚度约为1AU的光学薄辐射壳可以匹配所需的1K度幂律振幅。基于Alfven的日球电流模型，以相对论电子的嵌入双层为能量源，讨论了日鞘磁场的可能机制。
Measurements of the cosmic microwave background (CMB) spectral distortions (SDs) will open a new window on the very early universe, providing new information complementary to that gathered from CMB temperature and polarization anisotropies. In this paper, we study their synergy as a function of the characteristics of the considered experiments. In particular, we examine a wide range of sensitivities for possible SD measurements, spanning from FIRAS up to noise levels 1000 times better than PIXIE, and study their constraining power when combined with current or future CMB anisotropy experiments…
Detecting CMB modulations and non-Gaussianities from power multipoles
通过将CMB温度波动\emph{squared}分解为球谐函数，我们可以将\emph{CMB power multipoles}定义为基本观测量，以量化CMB中的任何通用调制。这允许简单的直接测量的CMB调制，也间接测量的CMB三谱，这完全确定在一个统计各向同性的宇宙中的CMB调制。CMB功率多极子可以达到比普朗克观测的当前约束更高的理论精度。偶极调制的理论精度$A\sim0.0015$得到$\sim 10$倍的提高;更高的$l$调制具有更高的精度。这就要求对CMB调制和非高斯约束的可能改进进行实际的观测研究。
Accurate constraints on curvature provide a powerful probe of inflation. However, curvature constraints based on specific assumptions of dark energy may lead to unreliable conclusions when used to test inflation models. To avoid this, it is important to obtain constraints that are independent on assumptions for dark energy. In this paper, we investigate such constraints on curvature from the geometrical probe constructed from galaxy-lensing cross-correlations. We study comprehensively the cross-correlations of galaxy with magnification, measured from type Ia supernovae's brightnesses ("$gκ^{\r…
