Cosmological Data Sets Research Articles

Optimal machine-driven acquisition of future cosmological data

We present a set of maps classifying regions of the sky according to their information gain potential as quantified by Fisher information. These maps can guide the optimal retrieval of relevant physical information with targeted cosmological searches. Specifically, we calculated the response of observed cosmic structures to perturbative changes in the cosmological model and we charted their respective contributions to Fisher information. Our physical forward-modeling machinery transcends the limitations of contemporary analyses based on statistical summaries to yield detailed characterizations of individual 3D structures. We demonstrate this advantage using galaxy counts data and we showcase the potential of our approach by studying the information gain of the Coma cluster. We find that regions in the vicinity of the filaments and cluster core, where mass accretion ensues from gravitational infall, are the most informative with regard to our physical model of structure formation in the Universe. Hence, collecting data in those regions would be most optimal for testing our model predictions. The results presented in this work are the first of their kind to elucidate the inhomogeneous distribution of cosmological information in the Universe. This study paves a new way forward for the performance of efficient targeted searches for the fundamental physics of the Universe, where search strategies are progressively refined with new cosmological data sets within an active learning framework.

Reducing the H_0 tension with exponential acoustic dark energy

The Hubble tension arises from different observations between the late-time and early Universe. We explore a new model with dark fluid, called the exponential acoustic dark energy (eADE) model, to relieve the Hubble tension. The eADE model gives an exponential form of the equation of state (EoS) in the acoustic dark energy, which is the first time to explore an exponential form for the EoS. In this model, the gravitational effects from the acoustic oscillations of the model can impact the CMB phenomena at the matter radiation equally epoch. We give the constraints of the eADE model by the current cosmological dataset. The comparison of the phenomena with the standard model can be shown through CMB and matter power spectra. The fitting results of our model have H_0 = 70.06^{+1.13}_{-1.09} in 95% C.L. and a smaller best-fit value than Lambda CDM.

Linear cosmological constraints on two-body decaying dark matter scenarios and the S8 tension

The '$S_8$ tension' is a longstanding discrepancy between the cosmic microwave background (CMB) and weak gravitational lensing determination of the amplitude of matter fluctuations, parametrized as $S_8\equiv\sigma_8(\Omega_m/0.3)^{0.5}$, where $\sigma_8$ is the root mean square of matter fluctuations on a 8 $h^{-1}$Mpc scale, and $\Omega_m$ is the total matter abundance. It was recently shown that dark matter (DM) decaying into a massless (dark radiation) and a massive (warm DM) species, with a lifetime $\Gamma^{-1} \simeq 55~(\varepsilon/0.007)^{1.4}$ Gyrs -- where $\varepsilon$ represent the mass-energy fraction transferred to the massless component -- can ease the tension. Thanks to a fast and accurate fluid approximation scheme for the warm species, we perform a comprehensive study of this 2-body decaying DM scenario, discussing in detail its dynamics and its impact on the CMB and linear matter power spectra. We then investigate the implications for the '$S_8$ tension' against a number of changes in the analysis: different $S_8$ priors, marginalization over the lensing information in Planck data, trading Planck high$-\ell$ polarization data for those from the SPTpol and ACTPol surveys, and the inclusion of the recent results from the Xenon1T collaboration. We conclude that the preference for decaying DM, apparent only when the $S_8$ value determined from weak lensing data is added to the analysis, does not sensibly degrade the fit to any of the cosmological data-sets considered, and that the model could potentially explain the anomalous electron recoil excess reported by the Xenon1T collaboration. Furthermore, we explictly show that while current CMB data alone are not sensitive enough to distinguish between standard CDM and decaying DM, next-generation CMB observations (CMB-S4) can unambiguously detect its signature.

Bounds on light sterile neutrino mass and mixing from cosmology and laboratory searches

We present a consistent framework to set limits on properties of light sterile neutrinos coupled to all three active neutrinos using a combination of the latest cosmological data and terrestrial measurements from oscillations, $\ensuremath{\beta}$-decay, and neutrinoless double-$\ensuremath{\beta}$-decay ($0\ensuremath{\nu}\ensuremath{\beta}\ensuremath{\beta}$) experiments. We directly constrain the full $3+1$ active-sterile mixing matrix elements $|{U}_{\ensuremath{\alpha}4}{|}^{2}$, with $\ensuremath{\alpha}\ensuremath{\in}(e,\ensuremath{\mu},\ensuremath{\tau})$, and the mass-squared splitting $\mathrm{\ensuremath{\Delta}}{m}_{41}^{2}\ensuremath{\equiv}{m}_{4}^{2}\ensuremath{-}{m}_{1}^{2}$. We find that results for a $3+1$ case differ from previously studied $1+1$ scenarios where the sterile is coupled to only one of the neutrinos, which is largely explained by parameter space volume effects. Limits on the mass splitting and the mixing matrix elements are currently dominated by the cosmological datasets. The exact results are slightly prior dependent, but we reliably find all matrix elements to be constrained below $|{U}_{\ensuremath{\alpha}4}{|}^{2}\ensuremath{\lesssim}{10}^{\ensuremath{-}3}$. Short-baseline neutrino oscillation hints in favor of eV-scale sterile neutrinos are in serious tension with these bounds, irrespective of prior assumptions. We also translate the bounds from the cosmological analysis into constraints on the parameters probed by laboratory searches, such as ${m}_{\ensuremath{\beta}}$ or ${m}_{\ensuremath{\beta}\ensuremath{\beta}}$, the effective mass parameters probed by $\ensuremath{\beta}$-decay and $0\ensuremath{\nu}\ensuremath{\beta}\ensuremath{\beta}$ searches, respectively. When allowing for mixing with a light sterile neutrino, cosmology leads to upper bounds of ${m}_{\ensuremath{\beta}}<0.09\text{ }\text{ }\mathrm{eV}$ and ${m}_{\ensuremath{\beta}\ensuremath{\beta}}<0.07\text{ }\text{ }\mathrm{eV}$ at 95% CL, more stringent than the limits from current laboratory experiments.

A more accurate Parameterization based on cosmic Age (MAPAge)

Recently, several statistically significant tensions between different cosmological datasets have raised doubts about the standard Lambda cold dark matter (ΛCDM) model. A recent letter (Huang 2020) suggests to use “Parameterization based on cosmic Age” (PAge) to approximate a broad class of beyond-ΛCDM models, with a typical accuracy ∼1% in angular diameter distances at z ≲ 10. In this work, we extend PAge to a More Accurate Parameterization based on cosmic Age (MAPAge) by adding a new degree of freedom η 2. The parameter η 2 describes the difference between physically motivated models and their phenomenological PAge approximations. The accuracy of MAPAge, typically of order 10−3 in angular diameter distances at z ≲ 10, is significantly better than PAge. We compare PAge and MAPAge with current observational data and forecast data. The conjecture in Huang (2020), that PAge approximation is sufficiently good for current observations, is quantitatively confirmed in this work. We also show that the extension from PAge to MAPAge is important for future observations, which typically require sub-percent accuracy in theoretical predictions.

Constraining the neutrino mass using a multitracer combination of two galaxy surveys and cosmic microwave background lensing

ABSTRACT Measuring the total neutrino mass is one of the most exciting opportunities available with next-generation cosmological data sets. We study the possibility of detecting the total neutrino mass using large-scale clustering in 21 cm intensity mapping and photometric galaxy surveys, together with cosmic microwave background (CMB) information. We include the scale-dependent halo bias contribution due to the presence of massive neutrinos, and use a multitracer analysis in order to reduce cosmic variance. The multitracer combination of an SKAO-MID 21 cm intensity map with stage 4 CMB dramatically shrinks the uncertainty on total neutrino mass to $\sigma (M_\nu) \simeq 45\,$ meV, using only linear clustering information ($k_{\rm max} = 0.1\, h\, \mathrm{Mpc}^{-1}$) and without a prior on optical depth. When we add to the multitracer the clustering information expected from Legacy Survey of Space and Time, the forecast is $\sigma (M_\nu) \simeq 12\,$ meV.

Cosmology from clustering, cosmic shear, CMB lensing, and cross correlations: combining Rubin observatory and Simons Observatory

ABSTRACT In the near future, the overlap of the Rubin Observatory Legacy Survey of Space and Time (LSST) and the Simons Observatory (SO) will present an ideal opportunity for joint cosmological data set analyses. In this paper, we simulate the joint likelihood analysis of these two experiments using six two-point functions derived from galaxy position, galaxy shear, and CMB lensing convergence fields. Our analysis focuses on realistic noise and systematics models and we find that the dark energy Figure of merit (FoM) increases by 53 per cent (92 per cent) from LSST-only to LSST+SO in Year 1 (Year 6). We also investigate the benefits of using the same galaxy sample for both clustering and lensing analyses, and find the choice improves the overall signal to noise by ${\sim}30{-}40{{\ \rm per\ cent}}$, which significantly improves the photo-z calibration and mildly improves the cosmological constraints. Finally, we explore the effects of catastrophic photo-z outliers finding that they cause significant parameter biases when ignored. We develop a new mitigation approach termed ‘island model’, which corrects a large fraction of the biases with only a few parameters while preserving the constraining power.

Possible discrepancies between cosmological and electroweak observables in Higgs Inflation

In this work, we revisit the non-minimally coupled Higgs Inflation scenario and investigate its observational viability in light of the current Cosmic Microwave Background, Baryon Acoustic Oscillation and type Ia Supernovae data. We explore the effects of the Coleman-Weinberg approximation to the Higgs potential in the primordial universe, connecting the predictions for the Lagrangian parameters at inflationary scales to the electroweak observables through Renormalization Group methods at two-loop order. Initially, we find that electroweak scale measurements may be dissonant to the limits obtained from the cosmological data sets used in the analysis. Specifically, an ≈ 8σ-discrepancy between the inflationary parameters and the value of the Monte Carlo reconstructed top quark mass is found. However, considering the most recent results obtained by the CMS Collaboration from differential cross-section measurements of the top quark production a good agreement is obtained.

Most constraining cosmological neutrino mass bounds

We present here up-to-date neutrino mass limits exploiting the most recent cosmological data sets. By making use of the cosmic microwave background temperature fluctuation and polarization measurements, supernovae Ia luminosity distances, baryon acoustic oscillation observations and determinations of the growth rate parameter, we are able to set the most constraining bound to date, $\ensuremath{\sum}{m}_{\ensuremath{\nu}}<0.09\text{ }\text{ }\mathrm{eV}$ at 95% C.L. This very tight limit is obtained without the assumption of any prior on the value of the Hubble constant and highly compromises the viability of the inverted mass ordering as the underlying neutrino mass pattern in nature. The results obtained here further strengthen the case for very large multitracer spectroscopic surveys as unique laboratories for cosmological relics, such as neutrinos: that would be the case of the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument survey and of the Euclid mission.

Observable relics of the simple harmonic universe

We analyze observational signatures arising from an epoch in cosmology corresponding to the simple harmonic universe, which consists of positive curvature, a negative cosmological constant, and one or more exotic matter sources with −1<w=p/ρ≤−1/3, which may then evolve or tunnel into an inflating and hot Big Bang phase. Particular relics specific to this class of models include spatial curvature with Ωk<0, modifications to the dark energy sector due to the presence of residual exotic matter, and the possibility that the cosmological constant may ultimately be negative. We review the constraints on the relevant parameters from Planck and other cosmological data sets, focusing on the roles of exotic matter and curvature, and we find that while sources with w≈−1 tend to tighten the constraints on Ωk, matter with w=−1/3 can decouple curvature from the expansion history. For the case where the dark energy sector includes a negative cosmological constant, we use the experimental data to find an associated lower bound on the lifetime of the expansion of the Universe.

AbacusSummit: a massive set of high-accuracy, high-resolution N-body simulations

ABSTRACT We present the public data release of the AbacusSummit cosmological N-body simulation suite, produced with the Abacus N-body code on the Summit supercomputer of the Oak Ridge Leadership Computing Facility. Abacus achieves $\mathcal {O}(10^{-5})$ median fractional force error at superlative speeds, calculating 70M particle updates per second per node at early times, and 45M particle updates per second per node at late times. The simulation suite totals roughly 60 trillion particles, the core of which is a set of 139 simulations with particle mass $2\times 10^{9}\, h^{-1}\, \mathrm{M}_\odot$ in box size $2\, h^{-1}\, \mathrm{Gpc}$. The suite spans 97 cosmological models, including Planck 2018, previous flagship simulation cosmologies, and a linear derivative and cosmic emulator grid. A subsuite of 1883 boxes of size $500\, h^{-1}\, \mathrm{Mpc}$ is available for covariance estimation. AbacusSummit data products span 33 epochs from z = 8 to 0.1 and include light cones, full particle snapshots, halo catalogues, and particle subsets sampled consistently across redshift. AbacusSummit is the largest high-accuracy cosmological N-body data set produced to date.

Difficulties in reconciling non-negligible differences between the local and cosmological values of the gravitational coupling in extended Brans-Dicke theories

Recent studies by Solà Peracaula, Gómez-Valent, de Cruz Pérez and Moreno-Pulido (2019,2020) have pointed out the intriguing possibility that Brans-Dicke cosmology with constant vacuum energy density (BD-ΛCDM) may be able to alleviate the H 0 and σ 8 tensions that are found in the framework of the concordance cosmological model (GR-ΛCDM). The fitting analyses presented in these works indicate a preference for values of the effective gravitational coupling appearing in the Friedmann equation, G, about 4–9% larger than Newton's constant (as measured on Earth), and mildly evolving with the expansion of the universe. The signal reaches the ∼ 3.5σ c.l. when the prior on H 0 from SH0ES and the angular diameter distances to strong gravitationally lensed quasars measured by H0LICOW are considered, and the ∼ 3σ c.l. when only the former is included. Thus, the improvement in the description of the cosmological datasets relies on the existence of a mechanism capable of screening the modified gravity effects at those scales where deviations from standard General Relativity (GR) are highly constrained, as in the Solar System. In this paper we explore several extensions of BD-ΛCDM that can leave the cosmological evolution basically unaltered at the background and linear perturbations level, while being able to screen the Brans-Dicke effects inside the regions of interest, leading to standard GR. We search for weak-field solutions around spherical static massive objects with no internal pressure and show that, unfortunately, these mechanisms can only explain very tiny departures of the effective cosmological gravitational coupling from the one measured locally. This might hinder the ability of BD-ΛCDM to alleviate the cosmological tensions.

The galaxy power spectrum take on spatial curvature and cosmic concordance

The concordance of the Λ CDM cosmological model in light of current observations has been the subject of an intense debate in recent months. The 2018 Planck Cosmic Microwave Background (CMB) temperature anisotropy power spectrum measurements appear at face value to favour a spatially closed Universe with curvature parameter Ω K < 0 . This preference disappears if Baryon Acoustic Oscillation (BAO) measurements are combined with Planck data to break the geometrical degeneracy, although the reliability of this combination has been questioned due to the strong tension present between the two datasets when assuming a curved Universe. Here, we approach this issue from yet another point of view, using measurements of the full-shape (FS) galaxy power spectrum, P ( k ) , from the Baryon Oscillation Spectroscopic Survey DR12 CMASS sample. By combining Planck data with FS measurements, we break the geometrical degeneracy and find Ω K = 0 . 0023 ± 0 . 0028 . This constrains the Universe to be spatially flat to sub-percent precision, in excellent agreement with results obtained using BAO measurements. However, as with BAO, the overall increase in the best-fit χ 2 suggests a similar level of tension between Planck and P ( k ) under the assumption of a curved Universe. While the debate on spatial curvature and the concordance between cosmological datasets remains open, our results provide new perspectives on the issue, highlighting the crucial role of FS measurements in the era of precision cosmology.

Towards a model-independent reconstruction approach for late-time Hubble data

Gaussian processes offers a convenient way to perform nonparametric reconstructions of observational data assuming only a kernel which describes the covariance between neighbouring points in a data set. We approach the ambiguity in the choice of kernel in Gaussian processes with two methods — (a) approximate Bayesian computation with sequential Monte Carlo sampling and (b) genetic algorithm — and use the overall resulting method to reconstruct the cosmic chronometers and supernovae type Ia data sets.The results have shown that the Matérn( ν = 5/2 ) kernel emerges on top of the two-hyperparameter family of kernels for both cosmological data sets. On the other hand, we use the genetic algorithm in order to select a most naturally-fit kernel among a competitive pool made up of a ten-hyperparameters class of kernels. Imposing a Bayesian information criterion-inspired measure of the fitness, the results have shown that a hybrid of the Radial Basis Function and the Matérn( ν = 5/2 ) kernel best represented both data sets. The kernel selection problem is not totally closed and may benefit from further analysis using other strategies to resolve an optimal kernel for a particular data set.

Cosmological models in R2 gravity with hybrid expansion law

In this paper, evolution of a Friedmann–Robertson–Walker universe is studied in a higher derivative theory of gravity. The relativistic solutions admitting hybrid expansion law of the universe are explored here. Hybrid expansion law is a general form of scale factor from which one can recover both the power-law expansion and exponential expansion as a special case. The hybrid expansion law is interesting as it addresses the early deceleration phase and presents accelerating phase satisfactorily. It is found that an inflationary scenario with hybrid expansion law is permitted in the [Formula: see text] gravity fairly well. We consider universe filled with cosmic fluid that describes by an equation of state (EoS) parameter which varies with time. Consequently, we analyze the time variation of energy density parameter, cosmic pressure, equation of state parameter, deceleration parameter and jerk parameter in the cosmological model. The constraints of the model parameters imposed by the cosmological observational data set are determined. The present value of the deceleration parameter [Formula: see text], EoS parameter and the epoch at which the transition of decelerated phase to accelerated phase are estimated. In the higher derivative theory, we obtain some new and interesting cosmological solutions relevant for building cosmological models.

Why reducing the cosmic sound horizon alone can not fully resolve the Hubble tension

The mismatch between the locally measured expansion rate of the universe and the one inferred from the cosmic microwave background measurements by Planck in the context of the standard ΛCDM, known as the Hubble tension, has become one of the most pressing problems in cosmology. A large number of amendments to the ΛCDM model have been proposed in order to solve this tension. Many of them introduce new physics, such as early dark energy, modifications of the standard model neutrino sector, extra radiation, primordial magnetic fields or varying fundamental constants, with the aim of reducing the sound horizon at recombination r⋆. We demonstrate here that any model which only reduces r⋆ can never fully resolve the Hubble tension while remaining consistent with other cosmological datasets. We show explicitly that models which achieve a higher Hubble constant with lower values of matter density Ωmh2 run into tension with the observations of baryon acoustic oscillations, while models with larger Ωmh2 develop tension with galaxy weak lensing data.

Snowmass2021 - Letter of interest cosmology intertwined II: The hubble constant tension

The current cosmological probes have provided a fantastic confirmation of the standard Λ Cold Dark Matter cosmological model, which has been constrained with unprecedented accuracy. However, with the increase of the experimental sensitivity, a few statistically significant tensions between different independent cosmological datasets emerged. While these tensions can be in part the result of systematic errors, the persistence after several years of accurate analysis strongly hints at cracks in the standard cosmological scenario and the need for new physics. In this Letter of Interest we will focus on the 4.4σ tension between the Planck estimate of the Hubble constant H0 and the SH0ES collaboration measurements. After showing the H0 evaluations made from different teams using different methods and geometric calibrations, we will list a few interesting models of new physics that could solve this tension and discuss how the next decade’s experiments will be crucial.

Cosmology intertwined III: [formula omitted] and [formula omitted

The standard Λ Cold Dark Matter cosmological model provides a wonderful fit to current cosmological data, but a few statistically significant tensions and anomalies were found in the latest data analyses. While these anomalies could be due to the presence of systematic errors in the experiments, they could also indicate the need for new physics beyond the standard model. In this Letter of Interest we focus on the tension between Planck data and weak lensing measurements and redshift surveys, in the value of the matter energy density Ωm and the amplitude σ8 (or the growth rate fσ8) of cosmic structure. We list a few promising models for solving this tension, and discuss the importance of trying to fit multiple cosmological datasets with complete physical models, rather than fitting individual datasets with a few handpicked theoretical parameters.

Easing cosmic tensions with an open and hotter universe

Despite the great observational success of the standard cosmological model some discrepancies in the inferred parameter constraints have manifested among a number of cosmological data sets. These include a tension between the expansion rate of our Cosmos as inferred from the cosmic microwave background (CMB) and as found from local measurements, the preference for an enhanced amplitude of CMB lensing, a somewhat low quadrupole moment of the CMB fluctuations as well as a preference for a lower amplitude of matter fluctuations in large-scale structure surveys than inferred from the CMB. We analyse these observational tensions under the addition of spatial curvature and a free CMB background temperature that may deviate from its locally measured value. With inclusion of these parameters, we observe a trend in the parameter constraints from CMB and baryon acoustic oscillation data towards an open and hotter universe with larger current expansion rate, standard CMB lensing amplitudes, lower amplitude of matter fluctuations, and marginally lower CMB quadrupole moment, consistently reducing the individual tensions among the cosmological data sets. Combining this data with local distance measurements, we find a preference for an open and hotter universe beyond the 99.7% confidence level. Finally, we briefly discuss a local void as a possible source for a deviation of the locally measured CMB temperature from its background value and as mimic of negative spatial curvature for CMB photons. This interpretation implies a $\sim$20% underdensity in our local neighbourhood of $\sim$10-100 Mpc in diameter, which is well within cosmic variance.

Cosmological cross-correlations and nearest neighbour distributions

ABSTRACT Cross-correlations between data sets are used in many different contexts in cosmological analyses. Recently, k-nearest neighbour cumulative distribution functions (kNN-CDF) were shown to be sensitive probes of cosmological (auto) clustering. In this paper, we extend the framework of NN measurements to describe joint distributions of, and correlations between, two data sets. We describe the measurement of joint kNN-CDFs, and show that these measurements are sensitive to all possible connected N-point functions that can be defined in terms of the two data sets. We describe how the cross-correlations can be isolated by combining measurements of the joint kNN-CDFs and those measured from individual data sets. We demonstrate the application of these measurements in the context of Gaussian density fields, as well as for fully non-linear cosmological data sets. Using a Fisher analysis, we show that measurements of the halo-matter cross-correlations, as measured through NN measurements are more sensitive to the underlying cosmological parameters, compared to traditional two-point cross-correlation measurements over the same range of scales. Finally, we demonstrate how the NN cross-correlations can robustly detect cross-correlations between sparse samples – the same regime where the two-point cross-correlation measurements are dominated by noise.