570 research outputs found
Expectations for the Difference Between Local and Global Measurements of the Hubble Constant
There are irreducible differences between the Hubble constant measured
locally and the global value. They are due to density perturbations and finite
sample volume (cosmic variance) and finite number of objects in the sample
(sampling variance). We quantify these differences for a suite of
COBE-normalized CDM models that are consistent with the observed large-scale
structure. For small samples of objects that only extend out to 10,000 km/sec,
the variance can approach 4%. For the largest samples of Type Ia supernovae
(SNeIa), which include about 40 objects and extend out to almost 40,000 km/sec,
the variance is 1-2% and is dominated by sampling variance. Sampling and cosmic
variance may be an important consideration in comparing local determinations of
the Hubble constant with precision determinations of the global value that will
be made from high-resolution maps of CBR anisotropy.Comment: 10 pages, Latex, 2 figures, version accepted for Ap.
Gravitational Collapse in One Dimension
We simulate the evolution of one-dimensional gravitating collisionless
systems from non- equilibrium initial conditions, similar to the conditions
that lead to the formation of dark- matter halos in three dimensions. As in the
case of 3D halo formation we find that initially cold, nearly homogeneous
particle distributions collapse to approach a final equilibrium state with a
universal density profile. At small radii, this attractor exhibits a power-law
behavior in density, {\rho}(x) \propto |x|^(-{\gamma}_crit), {\gamma}_crit
\simeq 0.47, slightly but significantly shallower than the value {\gamma} = 1/2
suggested previously. This state develops from the initial conditions through a
process of phase mixing and violent relaxation. This process preserves the
energy ranks of particles. By warming the initial conditions, we illustrate a
cross-over from this power-law final state to a final state containing a
homogeneous core. We further show that inhomogeneous but cold power-law initial
conditions, with initial exponent {\gamma}_i > {\gamma}_crit, do not evolve
toward the attractor but reach a final state that retains their original
power-law behavior in the interior of the profile, indicating a bifurcation in
the final state as a function of the initial exponent. Our results rely on a
high-fidelity event-driven simulation technique.Comment: 14 Pages, 13 Figures. Submitted to MNRA
Nonexistence theorems for traversable wormholes
Gauss-Bonnet formula is used to derive a new and simple theorem of
nonexistence of vacuum static nonsingular lorentzian wormholes. We also derive
simple proofs for the nonexistence of lorentzian wormhole solutions for some
classes of static matter such as, for instance, real scalar fields with a
generic potential obeying and massless fermions fields
Lensing of the CMB: Non Gaussian aspects
We study the generation of CMB anisotropies by gravitational lensing on small
angular scales. We show these fluctuations are not Gaussian. We prove that the
power spectrum of the tail of the CMB anisotropies on small angular scales
directly gives the power spectrum of the deflection angle. We show that the
generated power on small scales is correlated with the large scale gradient.
The cross correlation between large scale gradient and small scale power can be
used to test the hypothesis that the extra power is indeed generated by
lensing. We compute the three and four point function of the temperature in the
small angle limit. We relate the non-Gaussian aspects presented in this paper
as well as those in our previous studies of the lensing effects on large scales
to the three and four point functions. We interpret the statistics proposed in
terms of different configurations of the four point function and show how they
relate to the statistic that maximizes the S/N.Comment: Changes to match accepted version in PRD, 20 pages 10 figures. Better
resolution images of the figures can be found at
http://www.sns.ias.edu/~matiasz/RESEARCH/cmblensing.htm
Kinetic decoupling of neutralino dark matter
After neutralinos cease annihilating in the early Universe, they may still
scatter elastically from other particles in the primordial plasma. At some
point in time, however, they will eventually stop scattering. We calculate the
cross sections for neutralino elastic scattering from standard-model particles
to determine the time at which this kinetic decoupling occurs. We show that
kinetic decoupling occurs above a temperature MeV. Thereafter,
neutralinos act as collisionless cold dark matter.Comment: Replaced with revised version, new references adde
Using the acoustic peak to measure cosmological parameters
Recent measurements of the cosmic microwave background radiation by the
Boomerang experiment indicate that the universe is spatially flat. Here some
simple back-of-the-envelope calculations are used to explain their result. The
main result is a simple formula for the angular scale of the acoustic peak in
terms of the standard cosmological parameters:
l=193*[1+3(1-Omega_0)/5+(1-h)/5+Omega_Lambda/35].Comment: 4 pages, 1 figure, Explanations have been clarifie
Direct Signature of Evolving Gravitational Potential from Cosmic Microwave Background
We show that time dependent gravitational potential can be directly detected
from the cosmic microwave background (CMB) anisotropies. The signature can be
measured by cross-correlating the CMB with the projected density field
reconstructed from the weak lensing distortions of the CMB itself. The
cross-correlation gives a signal whenever there is a time dependent
gravitational potential. This method traces dark matter directly and has a well
defined redshift distribution of the window projecting over the density
perturbations, thereby avoiding the problems plaguing other proposed
cross-correlations. We show that both MAP and Planck will be able to probe this
effect for observationally relevant curvature and cosmological constant models,
which will provide additional constraints on the cosmological parameters.Comment: 4 pages, 2 figures. Submitted to PR
- …