Constraints on the SZ Power Spectrum on Degree Angular Scales in WMAP Data

The Sunyaev-Zel'dovich (SZ) effect has a distinct spectral signature that allows its separation from fluctuations in the cosmic microwave background (CMB) and foregrounds. Using CMB anisotropies measured in Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe's five-year maps, we constrain the SZ fluctuations at large, degree angular scales corresponding to multipoles in the range from 10 to 400. We provide upper bounds on SZ fluctuations at multipoles greater than 50, and find evidence for a hemispherically asymmetric signal at ten degrees angular scales. The amplitude of the detected signal cannot be easily explained with the allowed number density and temperature of electrons in the Galactic halo. We have failed to explain the excess signal as a residual from known Galactic foregrounds or instrumental uncertainties such as 1/f-noise.Comment: 14 pages, 3 figures, 2 tables. Simple typos fixe

Cosmological constraints on neutrino plus axion hot dark matter: Update after WMAP-5

We update our previous constraints on two-component hot dark matter (axions and neutrinos), including the recent WMAP 5-year data release. Marginalising over sum m_nu provides m_a < 1.02 eV (95% C.L.) for the axion mass. In the absence of axions we find sum m_nu < 0.63 eV (95% C.L.).Comment: 4 pages, 1 figure, uses iopart.cls; v2 matches published versio

Primordial Black Holes, Eternal Inflation, and the Inflationary Parameter Space after WMAP5

We consider constraints on inflation driven by a single, minimally coupled scalar field in the light of the WMAP5 dataset, as well as ACBAR and the SuperNova Legacy Survey. We use the Slow Roll Reconstruction algorithm to derive optimal constraints on the inflationary parameter space. The scale dependence in the slope of the scalar spectrum permitted by WMAP5 is large enough to lead to viable models where the small scale perturbations have a substantial amplitude when extrapolated to the end of inflation. We find that excluding parameter values which would cause the overproduction of primordial black holes or even the onset of eternal inflation leads to potentially significant constraints on the slow roll parameters. Finally, we present a more sophisticated approach to including priors based on the total duration of inflation, and discuss the resulting restrictions on the inflationary parameter space.Comment: v2: version published in JCAP. Minor clarifications and references adde

Primordial Neutrinos, Cosmological Perturbations in Interacting Dark-Energy Model: CMB and LSS

We present cosmological perturbation theory in neutrinos probe interacting dark-energy models, and calculate cosmic microwave background anisotropies and matter power spectrum. In these models, the evolution of the mass of neutrinos is determined by the quintessence scalar field, which is responsible for the cosmic acceleration today. We consider several types of scalar field potentials and put constraints on the coupling parameter between neutrinos and dark energy. Assuming the flatness of the universe, the constraint we can derive from the current observation is $\sum m_{\nu} < 0.87 eV$ at the 95 % confidence level for the sum over three species of neutrinos. We also discuss on the stability issue of the our model and on the impact of the scattering term in Boltzmann equation from the mass-varying neutrinos.Comment: 26 pages Revtex, 11 figures, Add new contents and reference

Thermal history of the plasma and high-frequency gravitons

Possible deviations from a radiation-dominated evolution, occurring prior the synthesis of light nuclei, impacted on the spectral energy density of high-frequency gravitons. For a systematic scrutiny of this situation, the $\Lambda$CDM paradigm must be complemented by (at least two) physical parameters describing, respectively, a threshold frequency and a slope. The supplementary frequency scale sets the lower border of a high-frequency domain where the spectral energy grows with a slope which depends, predominantly, upon the total sound speed of the plasma right after inflation. While the infra-red region of the graviton energy spectrum is nearly scale-invariant, the expected signals for typical frequencies larger than 0.01 nHz are hereby analyzed in a model-independent framework by requiring that the total sound speed of the post-inflationary plasma be smaller than the speed of light. Current (e.g. low-frequency) upper limits on the tensor power spectra (determined from the combined analysis of the three large-scale data sets) are shown to be compatible with a detectable signal in the frequency range of wide-band interferometers. In the present context, the scrutiny of the early evolution of the sound speed of the plasma can then be mapped onto a reliable strategy of parameter extraction including not only the well established cosmological observables but also the forthcoming data from wide band interferometers.Comment: 47 pages, 31 included figures, to appear in Classical and Quantum Gravit

Slow-roll, acceleration, the Big Rip and WKB approximation in NLS-type formulation of scalar field cosmology

Aspects of non-linear Schr\"{o}dinger-type (NLS) formulation of scalar (phantom) field cosmology on slow-roll, acceleration, WKB approximation and Big Rip singularity are presented. Slow-roll parameters for the curvature and barotropic density terms are introduced. We reexpress all slow-roll parameters, slow-roll conditions and acceleration condition in NLS form. WKB approximation in the NLS formulation is also discussed when simplifying to linear case. Most of the Schr\"{o}dinger potentials in NLS formulation are very slowly-varying, hence WKB approximation is valid in the ranges. In the NLS form of Big Rip singularity, two quantities are infinity in stead of three. We also found that approaching the Big Rip, $w_{\rm eff}\to -1 + {2}/{3q}$, $(q<0)$ which is the same as effective phantom equation of state in the flat case.Comment: [7 pages, no figure, more reference added, accepted by JCAP

WMAP and the Generalized Chaplygin Gas

We compare the WMAP temperature power spectrum and SNIa data to models with a generalized Chaplygin gas as dark energy. The generalized Chaplygin gas is a component with an exotic equation of state, p_X=-A/\rho^\alpha_X (a polytropic gas with negative constant and exponent). Our main result is that, restricting to a flat universe and to adiabatic pressure perturbations for the generalized Chaplygin gas, the constraints at 95% CL to the present equation of state w_X = p_X / \rho_X and to the parameter \alpha are -1\leq w_X < -0.8, 0 \leq \alpha <0.2, respectively. Moreover, we show that a Chaplygin gas (\alpha =1) as a candidate for dark energy is ruled out by our analysis at more than the 99.99% CL. A generalized Chaplygin gas as a unified dark matter candidate (\Omega_{CDM}=0) appears much less likely than as a dark energy model, although its \chi^2 is only two sigma away from the expected value.Comment: 10 pages, 8 figures, results clarifie

Implications of an additional scale on leptogenesis

We consider variations of the standard leptogenesis picture arising from the presence of an additional scale related to the breaking of a $U(1)_X$ abelian flavor symmetry. We show that quite generically the presence of an additional energy scale might introduce new qualitative and quantitative changes on leptogenesis. Especially interesting is the possibility of having succesful TeV leptogenesis with a vanishing total CP violating asymmetry. By solving the corresponding Boltzmann equations it is shown that these kind of scenarios encounters no difficulties in generating the Cosmic baryon asymmetry.Comment: 9 pages, 8 figures. To appear in the proceedings of DISCRETE'08: Symposium on Prospects in the Physics of Discrete Symmetries, Valencia, Spain, 11-16 Dec 200

Creating Statistically Anisotropic and Inhomogeneous Perturbations

In almost all structure formation models, primordial perturbations are created within a homogeneous and isotropic universe, like the one we observe. Because their ensemble averages inherit the symmetries of the spacetime in which they are seeded, cosmological perturbations then happen to be statistically isotropic and homogeneous. Certain anomalies in the cosmic microwave background on the other hand suggest that perturbations do not satisfy these statistical properties, thereby challenging perhaps our understanding of structure formation. In this article we relax this tension. We show that if the universe contains an appropriate triad of scalar fields with spatially constant but non-zero gradients, it is possible to generate statistically anisotropic and inhomogeneous primordial perturbations, even though the energy momentum tensor of the triad itself is invariant under translations and rotations.Comment: 20 pages, 1 figure. Uses RevTeX

Cosmology of neutrinos and extra light particles after WMAP3

We study how present data probe standard and non-standard properties of neutrinos and the possible existence of new light particles, freely-streaming or interacting, among themselves or with neutrinos. Our results include: sum m_nu < 0.40 eV at 99.9% C.L.; that extra massless particles have abundance Delta N_nu = 2 pm 1 if freely-streaming and Delta N_nu = 0 pm 1.3 if interacting; that 3 interacting neutrinos are disfavored at about 4 sigma. We investigate the robustness of our results by fitting to different sub-sets of data. We developed our own cosmological computational tools, somewhat different from the standard ones.Comment: 18 pages, 8 figures. Added in v2: an explicit comparison of our code with CAMB, some clarifications on the statistical analysis and some references. Matches version published in JCA