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Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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At least 127 records · Page 7
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DOE OSTI2014

Spectroscopic observation of Lyα emitters at z ∼ 7.7 and implications on re-ionization

We present spectroscopic follow-up observations on two bright Lyα emitter (LAE) candidates originally found by Krug et al. at a redshift of z ∼ 7.7 using the Multi-Object Spectrometer for Infra-Red Exploration at Keck. We rule out any line emission at the >5σ level for both objects, putting on solid ground a previous null result for one of the objects. The limits inferred from the non-detections rule out the previous claim of no or even reversed evolution between 5.7 < z < 7.7 in the Lyα luminosity function (LF) and suggest a drop in the Lyα LF consistent with that seen in Lyman break galaxy (LBG) samples. We model the redshift evolution of the LAE LF using the LBG UV-continuum LF and the observed rest-frame equivalent width distribution. From the comparison of our empirical model with the observed LAE distribution, we estimate lower limits of the neutral hydrogen fraction to be 50%-70% at z ∼ 7.7. Together with this, we find a strong evolution in the Lyα optical depth characterized by (1 + z){sup 2.2} {sup ±} {sup 0.5} beyond z = 6, indicative of a strong evolution of the intergalactic medium. Finally, we extrapolate the LAE LF to z ∼ 9 using our model and show that it is unlikely that large area surveys, like UltraVISTA or Euclid, pick up LAEs at this redshift assuming the current depths and area.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2014

The general relativistic instability supernova of a supermassive population III star

The formation of supermassive Population III stars with masses ≳10,000 M{sub ☉} in primeval galaxies in strong ultraviolet backgrounds at z ∼ 15 may be the most viable pathway to the formation of supermassive black holes by z ∼ 7. Most of these stars are expected to live for short times and then directly collapse to black holes, with little or no mass loss over their lives. However, we have now discovered that non-rotating primordial stars with masses close to 55,000 M{sub ☉} can instead die as highly energetic thermonuclear supernovae powered by explosive helium burning, releasing up to 10{sup 55} erg, or about 10,000 times the energy of a Type Ia supernova. The explosion is triggered by the general relativistic contribution of thermal photons to gravity in the core of the star, which causes the core to contract and explosively burn. The energy release completely unbinds the star, leaving no compact remnant, and about half of the mass of the star is ejected into the early cosmos in the form of heavy elements. The explosion would be visible in the near infrared at z ≲ 20 to Euclid and the Wide-Field Infrared Survey Telescope, perhaps signaling the birth of supermassive black hole seeds and the first quasars.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2014

A new method to search for high-redshift clusters using photometric redshifts

We describe a new method (Poisson probability method, PPM) to search for high-redshift galaxy clusters and groups by using photometric redshift information and galaxy number counts. The method relies on Poisson statistics and is primarily introduced to search for megaparsec-scale environments around a specific beacon. The PPM is tailored to both the properties of the FR I radio galaxies in the Chiaberge et al. sample, which are selected within the COSMOS survey, and to the specific data set used. We test the efficiency of our method of searching for cluster candidates against simulations. Two different approaches are adopted. (1) We use two z ∼ 1 X-ray detected cluster candidates found in the COSMOS survey and we shift them to higher redshift up to z = 2. We find that the PPM detects the cluster candidates up to z = 1.5, and it correctly estimates both the redshift and size of the two clusters. (2) We simulate spherically symmetric clusters of different size and richness, and we locate them at different redshifts (i.e., z = 1.0, 1.5, and 2.0) in the COSMOS field. We find that the PPM detects the simulated clusters within the considered redshift range with a statistical 1σ redshift accuracy of ∼0.05. The PPM is an efficient alternative method for high-redshift cluster searches that may also be applied to both present and future wide field surveys such as SDSS Stripe 82, LSST, and Euclid. Accurate photometric redshifts and a survey depth similar or better than that of COSMOS (e.g., I < 25) are required.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2014

Cluster candidates around low-power radio galaxies at z ∼ 1-2 in cosmos

We search for high-redshift (z ∼1-2) galaxy clusters using low power radio galaxies (FR I) as beacons and our newly developed Poisson probability method based on photometric redshift information and galaxy number counts. We use a sample of 32 FR Is within the Cosmic Evolution Survey (COSMOS) field from the Chiaberge et al. catalog. We derive a reliable subsample of 21 bona fide low luminosity radio galaxies (LLRGs) and a subsample of 11 high luminosity radio galaxies (HLRGs), on the basis of photometric redshift information and NRAO VLA Sky Survey radio fluxes. The LLRGs are selected to have 1.4 GHz rest frame luminosities lower than the fiducial FR I/FR II divide. This also allows us to estimate the comoving space density of sources with L {sub 1.4} ≅ 10{sup 32.3} erg s{sup –1} Hz{sup –1} at z ≅ 1.1, which strengthens the case for a strong cosmological evolution of these sources. In the fields of the LLRGs and HLRGs we find evidence that 14 and 8 of them reside in rich groups or galaxy clusters, respectively. Thus, overdensities are found around ∼70% of the FR Is, independently of the considered subsample. This rate is in agreement with the fraction found for low redshift FR Is and it is significantly higher than that for FR IIs at all redshifts. Although our method is primarily introduced for the COSMOS survey, it may be applied to both present and future wide field surveys such as Sloan Digital Sky Survey Stripe 82, LSST, and Euclid. Furthermore, cluster candidates found with our method are excellent targets for next generation space telescopes such as James Webb Space Telescope.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2015

STRONGLY LENSED JETS, TIME DELAYS, AND THE VALUE OF H {sub 0}

In principle, the most straightforward method of estimating the Hubble constant relies on time delays between mirage images of strongly lensed sources. It is a puzzle, then, that the values of H {sub 0} obtained with this method span a range from ∼50-100 km s{sup –1}Mpc{sup –1}. Quasars monitored to measure these time delays are multi-component objects. The variability may arise from different components of the quasar or may even originate from a jet. Misidentifying a variable-emitting region in a jet with emission from the core region may introduce an error in the Hubble constant derived from a time delay. Here, we investigate the complex structure of the sources as the underlying physical explanation of the wide spread in values of the Hubble constant based on gravitational lensing. Our Monte Carlo simulations demonstrate that the derived value of the Hubble constant is very sensitive to the offset between the center of the emission and the center of the variable emitting region. Therefore, we propose using the value of H {sub 0} known from other techniques to spatially resolve the origin of the variable emission once the time delay is measured. We particularly advocate this method for gamma-ray astronomy, where the angular resolution of detectors reaches approximately 0.°1; lensed blazars offer the only route for identify the origin of gamma-ray flares. Large future samples of gravitationally lensed sources identified with Euclid, SKA, and LSST will enable a statistical determination of H {sub 0}.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2015

Correcting the z ∼ 8 galaxy luminosity function for gravitational lensing magnification bias

We present a Bayesian framework to account for the magnification bias from both strong and weak gravitational lensing in estimates of high-redshift galaxy luminosity functions (LFs). We illustrate our method by estimating the z ∼ 8 UV LF using a sample of 97 Y-band dropouts (Lyman break galaxies) found in the Brightest of Reionizing Galaxies (BoRG) survey and from the literature. We find the LF is well described by a Schechter function with characteristic magnitude of M{sup ⋆}=−19.85{sub −0.35}{sup +0.30}, faint-end slope of α=−1.72{sub −0.29}{sup +0.30}, and number density of log{sub 10}Ψ{sup ⋆}(Mpc{sup −3})=−3.00{sub −0.31}{sup +0.23}. These parameters are consistent within the uncertainties with those inferred from the same sample without accounting for the magnification bias, demonstrating that the effect is small for current surveys at z ∼ 8, and cannot account for the apparent overdensity of bright galaxies compared to a Schechter function found recently by Bowler et al. and Finkelstein et al. We estimate that the probability of finding a strongly lensed z ∼ 8 source in our sample is in the range ∼3–15% depending on limiting magnitude. We identify one strongly lensed candidate and three cases of intermediate lensing in BoRG (estimated magnification μ > 1.4) in addition to the previously known candidate group-scale strong lens. Using a range of theoretical LFs we conclude that magnification bias will dominate wide field surveys—such as those planned for the Euclid and WFIRST missions—especially at z > 10. Magnification bias will need to be accounted for in order to derive accurate estimates of high-redshift LFs in these surveys and to distinguish between galaxy formation models.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2015

The fastest unbound stars in the universe

The discovery of hypervelocity stars (HVSs) leaving our galaxy with speeds of nearly 10{sup 3} km s{sup −1} has provided strong evidence of the existence of a massive compact object at the galaxy’s center. HVSs ejected via the disruption of stellar binaries can occasionally yield a star with v{sub ∞} ≲ 10{sup 4} km s{sup −1}; here we show that this mechanism can be extended to massive black hole (MBH) mergers, where the secondary star is replaced by a MBH with mass M{sub 2}≳10{sup 5}M{sub ⊙}. We find that stars that are originally bound to the secondary MBH are frequently ejected with v{sub ∞}>10{sup 4} km s{sup −1}, and occasionally with velocities ∼10{sup 5} km s{sup −1} (one third the speed of light). For this reason we refer to stars ejected from these systems as “semi-relativistic” hypervelocity stars (SHSs). Bound to no galaxy, the velocities of these stars are so great that they can cross a significant fraction of the observable universe in the time since their ejection (several Gpc). We demonstrate that if a significant fraction of MBH mergers undergoes a phase in which their orbital eccentricity is ≳0.5 and their periapse distance is tens of the primary’s Schwarzschild radius, the space density of fast-moving (v{sub ∞}>10{sup 4} km s{sup −1}) SHSs may be as large as 10{sup 3} Mpc{sup −3}. Hundreds of SHSs will be giant stars that can be detected by future all-sky infrared surveys such as WFIRST or Euclid and proper motion surveys such as LSST, with spectroscopic follow-up being possible with the James Webb Space Telescope.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2015

Observational signatures of modified gravity on ultra-large scales

Extremely large surveys with future experiments like Euclid and the SKA will soon allow us to access perturbation modes close to the Hubble scale, with wavenumbers k∼H. If a modified gravity (MG) theory is responsible for cosmic acceleration, then the Hubble scale is a natural regime for deviations from General Relativity (GR) to become manifest. However, the majority of studies to date have concentrated on the consequences of alternative gravity theories for the subhorizon, quasi-static regime. In this paper, we investigate how modifications to the gravitational field equations affect perturbations around the Hubble scale. We choose functional forms to represent the generic scale-dependent behavior of gravity theories that modify GR at long wavelengths, and study the resulting deviations of ultra-large-scale relativistic observables from their GR behavior. We find that these are small unless modifications to the field equations are drastic. The angular dependence and redshift evolution of the deviations is highly parameterization- and survey-dependent, however, and so they are possibly a rich source of MG phenomenology if they can be measured.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2015

A Hubble diagram for quasars

We present a new method to test the ΛCDM cosmological model and to estimate cosmological parameters based on the nonlinear relation between the ultraviolet and X-ray luminosities of quasars. We built a data set of 1138 quasars by merging several samples from the literature with X-ray measurements at 2 keV and SDSS photometry, which was used to estimate the extinction-corrected 2500 Å flux. We obtained three main results: (1) we checked the nonlinear relation between X-ray and UV luminosities in small redshift bins up to z∼6, confirming that the relation holds at all redshifts with the same slope; (2) we built a Hubble diagram for quasars up to z∼6, which is well matched to that of supernovae in the common z = 0–1.4 redshift interval and extends the test of the cosmological model up to z∼6; and (3) we showed that this nonlinear relation is a powerful tool for estimating cosmological parameters. Using the present data and assuming a ΛCDM model, we obtain Ω{sub M} = 0.22{sub −0.08}{sup +0.10} and Ω{sub Λ} = 0.92{sub −0.30}{sup +0.18} (Ω{sub M} = 0.28 ± 0.04 and Ω{sub Λ} = 0.73 ± 0.08 from a joint quasar-SNe fit). Much more precise measurements will be achieved with future surveys. A few thousand SDSS quasars already have serendipitous X-ray observations from Chandra or XMM-Newton, and at least 100,000 quasars with UV and X-ray data will be made available by the extended ROentgen Survey with an Imaging Telescope Array all-sky survey in a few years. The Euclid, Large Synoptic Survey Telescope, and Advanced Telescope for High ENergy Astrophysics surveys will further increase the sample size to at least several hundred thousand. Our simulations show that these samples will provide tight constraints on the cosmological parameters and will allow us to test for possible deviations from the standard model with higher precision than is possible today.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2013

BAO Cosmography

Cosmography provides a model-independent way to map the expansion history of the Universe. In this paper we simulate a Euclid-like survey and explore cosmographic constraints from future Baryonic Acoustic Oscillations (BAO) observations. We derive general expressions for the BAO transverse and radial modes and discuss the optimal order of the cosmographic expansion that provides reliable cosmological constraints. Through constraints on the deceleration and jerk parameters, we show that future BAO data have the potential to provide a model-independent check of the cosmic acceleration as well as a discrimination between the standard ΛCDM model and alternative mechanisms of cosmic acceleration.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2013

Cosmological information in the intrinsic alignments of luminous red galaxies

The intrinsic alignments of galaxies are usually regarded as a contaminant to weak gravitational lensing observables. The alignment of Luminous Red Galaxies, detected unambiguously in observations from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey, can be reproduced by the linear tidal alignment model of Catelan, Kamionkowski and Blandford (2001) on large scales. In this work, we explore the cosmological information encoded in the intrinsic alignments of red galaxies. We make forecasts for the ability of current and future spectroscopic surveys to constrain local primordial non-Gaussianity and Baryon Acoustic Oscillations (BAO) in the cross-correlation function of intrinsic alignments and the galaxy density field. For the Baryon Oscillation Spectroscopic Survey, we find that the BAO signal in the intrinsic alignments is marginally significant with a signal-to-noise ratio of 1.8 and 2.2 with the current LOWZ and CMASS samples of galaxies, respectively, and increasing to 2.3 and 2.7 once the survey is completed. For the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument and for a spectroscopic survey following the EUCLID redshift selection function, we find signal-to-noise ratios of 12 and 15, respectively. Local type primordial non-Gaussianity, parametrized by f{sub NL} = 10, is only marginally significant in the intrinsic alignments signal with signal-to-noise ratios < 2 for the three surveys considered.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2014

Cosmological parameter estimation with large scale structure observations

We estimate the sensitivity of future galaxy surveys to cosmological parameters, using the redshift dependent angular power spectra of galaxy number counts, C{sub ℓ}(z{sub 1},z{sub 2}), calculated with all relativistic corrections at first order in perturbation theory. We pay special attention to the redshift dependence of the non-linearity scale and present Fisher matrix forecasts for Euclid-like and DES-like galaxy surveys. We compare the standard P(k) analysis with the new C{sub ℓ}(z{sub 1},z{sub 2}) method. We show that for surveys with photometric redshifts the new analysis performs significantly better than the P(k) analysis. For spectroscopic redshifts, however, the large number of redshift bins which would be needed to fully profit from the redshift information, is severely limited by shot noise. We also identify surveys which can measure the lensing contribution and we study the monopole, C{sub 0}(z{sub 1},z{sub 2})

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2014

Probing neutrinos from Planck and forthcoming galaxy redshift surveys

We investigate how much the constraints on the neutrino properties can be improved by combining the CMB, the photometric and spectroscopic galaxy redshift surveys which include the CMB lensing, galaxy lensing tomography, galaxy clustering and redshift space distortion observables. We pay a particular attention to the constraint on the neutrino mass in view of the forthcoming redshift surveys such as the Euclid satellite and the LSST survey along with the Planck CMB lensing measurements. Combining the transverse mode information from the angular power spectrum and the longitudinal mode information from the spectroscopic survey with the redshift space distortion measurements can determine the total neutrino mass with the projected error of O(0.02) eV. Our analysis fixes the mass splittings among the neutrino species to be consistent with the neutrino oscillation data, and we accordingly study the sensitivity of our parameter estimations on the minimal neutrino mass. The cosmological measurement of the total neutrino mass can distinguish between the normal and inverted mass hierarchy scenarios if the minimal neutrino mass ∼<0.005 eV with the predicted 1–σ uncertainties taken into account.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2014

Linear perturbation constraints on multi-coupled dark energy

The Multi-coupled Dark Energy (McDE) scenario has been recently proposed as a specific example of a cosmological model characterized by a non-standard physics of the dark sector of the universe that nevertheless gives an expansion history which does not significantly differ from the one of the standard ΛCDM model. Thanks to a dynamical screening mechanism, in fact, the interaction between the Dark Energy field and the Dark Matter sector is effectively suppressed at the background level during matter domination. As a consequence, background observables cannot discriminate a McDE cosmology from ΛCDM for a wide range of model parameters. On the other hand, linear perturbations are expected to provide tighter bounds due to the existence of attractive and repulsive fifth-forces associated with the dark interactions. In this work, we present the first constraints on the McDE scenario obtained by comparing the predicted evolution of linear density perturbations with a large compilation of recent data sets for the growth rate fσ{sub 8}, including 6dFGS, LRG, BOSS, WiggleZ and VIPERS. Confirming qualitative expectations, growth rate data provide much tighter bounds on the model parameters as compared to the extremely loose bounds that can be obtained when only the background expansion history is considered. In particular, the 95% confidence level on the coupling strength |β| is reduced from |β| ≤ 83 (background constraints only) to |β| ≤ 0.88 (background and linear perturbation constraints). We also investigate how these constraints further improve when using data from future wide-field surveys such as supernova data from LSST and growth rate data from Euclid-type missions. In this case the 95% confidence level on the coupling further reduce to |β| ≤ 0.85. Such constraints are in any case still consistent with a scalar fifth-force of gravitational strength, and we foresee that tighter bounds might be possibly obtained from the investigation of nonlinear structure formation in McDE cosmologies.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2014

The clustering of baryonic matter. I: a halo-model approach

In this paper I generalize the halo model for the clustering of dark matter in order to produce the power spectra of the two main baryonic matter components in the Universe: stars and hot gas. As a natural extension, this can be also used to describe the clustering of all mass. According to the design of the halo model, the large-scale power spectra of the various matter components are physically connected with the distribution of each component within bound structures and thus, ultimately, with the complete set of physical processes that drive the formation of galaxies and galaxy clusters. Besides being practical for cosmological and parametric studies, the semi-analytic model presented here has also other advantages. Most importantly, it allows one to understand on physical ground what is the relative contribution of each matter component to the total clustering of mass as a function of scale, and thus it opens an interesting new window to infer the distribution of baryons through high precision cosmic shear measurements. This is particularly relevant for future wide-field photometric surveys such as Euclid. In this work the concept of the model and its uncertainties are illustrated in detail, while in a companion paper we use a set of numerical hydrodynamic simulations to show a practical application and to investigate where the model itself needs to be improved.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2014

Probing non-standard gravity with the growth index: a background independent analysis

Measurements of the growth index of linear matter density fluctuations γ(z) provide a clue as to whether Einstein's field equations encompass gravity also on large cosmic scales, those where the expansion of the universe accelerates. We show that the information encoded in this function can be satisfactorily parameterized using a small set of coefficients γ{sub i}, in such a way that the true scaling of the growth index is recovered to better than 1% in most dark energy and dark gravity models. We find that the likelihood of current data, given this formalism and the Λ Cold Dark Matter (ΛCDM) expansion model of Planck, is maximal for γ{sub 0} = 0.74{sup +0.44}{sub −0.41} and γ{sub 1} = 0.01{sup +0.46}{sub −0.46}, a measurement compatible with the ΛCDM predictions (γ{sub 0} = 0.545, γ{sub 1} = −0.007). In addition, data tend to favor models predicting slightly less growth of structures than the Planck ΛCDM scenario. The main aim of the paper is to provide a prescription for routinely calculating, in an analytic way, the amplitude of the growth indices γ{sub i} in relevant cosmological scenarios, and to show that these parameters naturally define a space where predictions of alternative theories of gravity can be compared against growth data in a manner which is independent from the expansion history of the cosmological background. As the standard Ω-plane provides a tool to identify different expansion histories H(t) and their relation to various cosmological models, the γ-plane can thus be used to locate different growth rate histories f(t) and their relation to alternatives model of gravity. As a result, we find that the Dvali-Gabadadze-Porrati gravity model is rejected with a 95% confidence level. By simulating future data sets, such as those that a Euclid-like mission will provide, we also show how to tell apart ΛCDM predictions from those of more extreme possibilities, such as smooth dark energy models, clustering quintessence or parameterized post-Friedmann cosmological models.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2014

Phenomenology of dark energy: exploring the space of theories with future redshift surveys

We use the effective field theory of dark energy to explore the space of modified gravity models which are capable of driving the present cosmic acceleration. We identify five universal functions of cosmic time that are enough to describe a wide range of theories containing a single scalar degree of freedom in addition to the metric. The first function (the effective equation of state) uniquely controls the expansion history of the universe. The remaining four functions appear in the linear cosmological perturbation equations, but only three of them regulate the growth history of large scale structures. We propose a specific parameterization of such functions in terms of characteristic coefficients that serve as coordinates in the space of modified gravity theories and can be effectively constrained by the next generation of cosmological experiments. We address in full generality the problem of the soundness of the theory against ghost-like and gradient instabilities and show how the space of non-pathological models shrinks when a more negative equation of state parameter is considered. This analysis allows us to locate a large class of stable theories that violate the null energy condition (i.e. super-acceleration models) and to recover, as particular subsets, various models considered so far. Finally, under the assumption that the true underlying cosmological model is the Λ Cold Dark Matter (ΛCDM) scenario, and relying on the figure of merit of EUCLID-like observations, we demonstrate that the theoretical requirement of stability significantly narrows the empirical likelihood, increasing the discriminatory power of data. We also find that the vast majority of these non-pathological theories generating the same expansion history as the ΛCDM model predict a different, lower, growth rate of cosmic structures.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2014

Non-linear relativistic contributions to the cosmological weak-lensing convergence

Relativistic contributions to the dynamics of structure formation come in a variety of forms, and can potentially give corrections to the standard picture on typical scales of 100 Mpc. These corrections cannot be obtained by Newtonian numerical simulations, so it is important to accurately estimate the magnitude of these relativistic effects. Density fluctuations couple to produce a background of gravitational waves, which is larger than any primordial background. A similar interaction produces a much larger spectrum of vector modes which represent the frame-dragging rotation of spacetime. These can change the metric at the percent level in the concordance model at scales below the equality scale. Vector modes modify the lensing of background galaxies by large-scale structure. This gives in principle the exciting possibility of measuring relativistic frame dragging effects on cosmological scales. The effects of the non-linear tensor and vector modes on the cosmic convergence are computed and compared to first-order lensing contributions from density fluctuations, Doppler lensing, and smaller Sachs-Wolfe effects. The lensing from gravitational waves is negligible so we concentrate on the vector modes. We show the relative importance of this for future surveys such as Euclid and SKA. We find that these non-linear effects only marginally affect the overall weak lensing signal so they can safely be neglected in most analyses, though are still much larger than the linear Sachs-Wolfe terms. The second-order vector contribution can dominate the first-order Doppler lensing term at moderate redshifts and are actually more important for survey geometries like the SKA.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗