2,496 research outputs found
Predicting Big Bang Deuterium
We present new upper and lower bounds to the primordial abundances of
deuterium and helium-3 based on observational data from the solar system and
the interstellar medium. Independent of any model for the primordial production
of the elements we find (at the 95\% C.L.): and . When combined with
the predictions of standard big bang nucleosynthesis, these constraints lead to
a 95\% C.L. bound on the primordial abundance of deuterium: . Measurements of deuterium absorption in the
spectra of high redshift QSOs will directly test this prediction. The
implications of this prediction for the primordial abundances of helium-4 and
lithium-7 are discussed, as well as those for the universal density of baryons.Comment: Revised version of paper to reflect comments of the referee and reply
to suggestions of Copi, Schramm, and Turner regarding the overall analysis
and treatment of chemical evolution of D and He-3. Best-fit D/H abundance
changes from (2.3 + 3.0 - 1.0)x10^{-5} to (3.5 +2.7 - 1.8) x10^{-5}. See also
hep-ph/950531
Limits on MeV Dark Matter from the Effective Number of Neutrinos
Thermal dark matter that couples more strongly to electrons and photons than
to neutrinos will heat the electron-photon plasma relative to the neutrino
background if it becomes nonrelativistic after the neutrinos decouple from the
thermal background. This results in a reduction in N_eff below the
standard-model value, a result strongly disfavored by current CMB observations.
Taking conservative lower bounds on N_eff and on the decoupling temperature of
the neutrinos, we derive a bound on the dark matter particle mass of m_\chi >
3-9 MeV, depending on the spin and statistics of the particle. For p-wave
annihilation, our limit on the dark matter particle mass is stronger than the
limit derived from distortions to the CMB fluctuation spectrum produced by
annihilations near the epoch of recombination.Comment: 5 pages, 1 figure, discussion added, references added and updated,
labels added to figure, to appear in Phys. Rev.
A method for the estimation of p-mode parameters from averaged solar oscillation power spectra
A new fitting methodology is presented which is equally well suited for the
estimation of low-, medium-, and high-degree mode parameters from -averaged
solar oscillation power spectra of widely differing spectral resolution. This
method, which we call the "Windowed, MuLTiple-Peak, averaged spectrum", or
WMLTP Method, constructs a theoretical profile by convolving the weighted sum
of the profiles of the modes appearing in the fitting box with the power
spectrum of the window function of the observing run using weights from a
leakage matrix that takes into account both observational and physical effects,
such as the distortion of modes by solar latitudinal differential rotation. We
demonstrate that the WMLTP Method makes substantial improvements in the
inferences of the properties of the solar oscillations in comparison with a
previous method that employed a single profile to represent each spectral peak.
We also present an inversion for the internal solar structure which is based
upon 6,366 modes that we have computed using the WMLTP method on the 66-day
long 2010 SOHO/MDI Dynamics Run. To improve both the numerical stability and
reliability of the inversion we developed a new procedure for the
identification and correction of outliers in a frequency data set. We present
evidence for a pronounced departure of the sound speed in the outer half of the
solar convection zone and in the subsurface shear layer from the radial sound
speed profile contained in Model~S of Christensen-Dalsgaard and his
collaborators that existed in the rising phase of Solar Cycle~24 during
mid-2010
Metastable GeV-scale particles as a solution to the cosmological lithium problem
The persistent discrepancy between observations of 7Li with putative
primordial origin and its abundance prediction in Big Bang Nucleosynthesis
(BBN) has become a challenge for the standard cosmological and astrophysical
picture. We point out that the decay of GeV-scale metastable particles X may
significantly reduce the BBN value down to a level at which it is reconciled
with observations. The most efficient reduction occurs when the decay happens
to charged pions and kaons, followed by their charge exchange reactions with
protons. Similarly, if X decays to muons, secondary electron antineutrinos
produce a similar effect. We consider the viability of these mechanisms in
different classes of new GeV-scale sectors, and find that several minimal
extensions of the Standard Model with metastable vector and/or scalar particles
are capable of solving the cosmological lithium problem. Such light states can
be a key to the explanation of recent cosmic ray anomalies and can be searched
for in a variety of high-intensity medium-energy experiments.Comment: 50 pages, 13 figures; references added, typo correcte
The Effect of Time Variation in the Higgs Vacuum Expectation Value on the Cosmic Microwave Background
A time variation in the Higgs vacuum expectation value alters the electron
mass and thereby changes the ionization history of the universe. This change
produces a measurable imprint on the pattern of cosmic microwave background
(CMB) fluctuations. The nuclear masses and nuclear binding energies, as well as
the Fermi coupling constant, are also altered, with negligible impact on the
CMB. We calculate the changes in the spectrum of the CMB fluctuations as a
function of the change in the electron mass. We find that future CMB
experiments could be sensitive to |\Delta m_e/m_e| \sim |\Delta G_F/G_F| \sim
10^{-2} - 10^{-3}. However, we also show that a change in the electron mass is
nearly, but not exactly, degenerate with a change in the fine-structure
constant. If both the electron mass and the fine-structure constant are
time-varying, the corresponding CMB limits are much weaker, particularly for l
< 1000.Comment: 6 pages, 3 figures, Fig. 3 modified, other minor correction
The Interaction of New and Old Magnetic Fluxes at the Beginning of Solar Cycle 23
The 11-year cycle of solar activity follows Hale's law by reversing the
magnetic polarity of leading and following sunspots in bipolar regions during
the minima of activity. In the 1996-97 solar minimum, most solar activity
emerged in narrow longitudinal zones - `active longitudes' but over a range in
latitude. Investigating the distribution of solar magnetic flux, we have found
that the Hale sunspot polarity reversal first occurred in these active zones.
We have estimated the rotation rates of the magnetic flux in the active zones
before and after the polarity reversal. Comparing these rotation rates with the
internal rotation inferred by helioseismology, we suggest that both `old' and
`new' magnetic fluxes were probably generated in a low-latitude zone near the
base of the solar convection zone. The reversal of active region polarity
observed in certain longitudes at the beginning of a new solar cycle suggests
that the phenomenon of active longitudes may give fundamental information about
the mechanism of the solar cycle. The non-random distribution of old-cycle and
new-cycle fluxes presents a challenge for dynamo theories, most of which assume
a uniform longitudinal distribution of solar magnetic fields.Comment: 4 pages, 5 figures; accepted for publication in ApJ Letter
On Random Bubble Lattices
We study random bubble lattices which can be produced by processes such as
first order phase transitions, and derive characteristics that are important
for understanding the percolation of distinct varieties of bubbles. The results
are relevant to the formation of topological defects as they show that infinite
domain walls and strings will be produced during appropriate first order
transitions, and that the most suitable regular lattice to study defect
formation in three dimensions is a face centered cubic lattice. Another
application of our work is to the distribution of voids in the large-scale
structure of the universe. We argue that the present universe is more akin to a
system undergoing a first-order phase transition than to one that is
crystallizing, as is implicit in the Voronoi foam description. Based on the
picture of a bubbly universe, we predict a mean coordination number for the
voids of 13.4. The mean coordination number may also be used as a tool to
distinguish between different scenarios for structure formation.Comment: several modifications including new abstract, comparison with froth
models, asymptotics of coordination number distribution, further discussion
of biased defects, and relevance to large-scale structur
Probing neutrino decays with the cosmic microwave background
We investigate in detail the possibility of constraining neutrino decays with
data from the cosmic microwave background radiation (CMBR). Two generic decays
are considered \nu_H -> \nu_L \phi and \nu_H -> \nu_L \nu_L_bar \nu_L. We have
solved the momentum dependent Boltzmann equation in order to account for
possible relativistic decays. Doing this we estimate that any neutrino with
mass m > 1 eV decaying before the present should be detectable with future CMBR
data. Combining this result with other results on stable neutrinos, any
neutrino mass of the order 1 eV should be detectable.Comment: 8 pages, 4 figures, to appear in Phys. Rev.
A conjecture on the origin of dark energy
The physical origin of holographic dark energy (HDE) is investigated. The
main existing explanations, namely the UV/IR connection argument of Cohen et
al, Thomas' bulk holography argument, and Ng's spacetime foam argument, are
shown to be not satisfactory. A new explanation of the HDE model is then
proposed based on the ideas of Thomas and Ng. It is suggested that the dark
energy might originate from the quantum fluctuations of spacetime limited by
the event horizon of the universe. Several potential problems of the
explanation are also discussed.Comment: 11 pages, no figure
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