Large-scale Structure Formation Research Articles

Higgs-portal scalar dark matter: Scattering cross section and observable limits

The simplest Higgs-portal dark matter model is studied in the light of dark matter self-interacting effects on the formation of large scale structures. We show the direct detection limits in both the resonant and large mass region. Finally, we also compare these limits with those at the LHC and Xenon 1T experiments.

Separation of Unsteady Scales in a Mixing Layer Using Empirical Mode Decomposition

Empirical mode decomposition has been shown to be a valuable data analysis tool in a wide array of technical fields, and it has recently emerged as a useful technique for studying complex fluid flows. This technique is useful for separating relevant unsteady spatiotemporal scales from a signal through an adaptive, iterative data-processing algorithm. Traditionally, empirical mode decomposition has been used to study time-dependent single-dimensional signals, though it can also be useful for studying multidimensional flowfield data. For the current study, unsteady velocity measurements were acquired across the initial development region of a turbulent-plane mixing layer using time-resolved particle image velocimetry. Empirical mode decomposition was applied to the resulting velocity field measurements to decompose the flowfield into several unsteady modes. Single-dimensional empirical mode decomposition was used to understand the time-frequency behavior of the flow associated with the formation and pairing process of large-scale vortical structures. The resulting spectrogram clearly displayed a periodic influence of large-scale vortex structures produced by the Kelvin–Helmholtz instability, which also exhibited a phase relationship with the vortex pairing mechanism. A multidimensional empirical mode decomposition analysis was also conducted, which allowed the unsteady velocity field to be decomposed into scale-based modes with dependence on , , and dimensions. This analysis allowed the influence of small-scale turbulent structures within the flowfield to be separated from those associated with large-scale vortical structures produced by the Kelvin–Helmholtz instability.

Large eddy simulation of combustion instability in a tripropellant air heater

This research is motivated by the issue associated with high frequency combustion instability. Large eddy simulation was performed to investigate spontaneous combustion instability in an air/LO2/C2H5OH tripropellant air heater. The simulation predicts self-excited transverse oscillations. Overall behavior of combustion instability including pressure time histories, mode shapes, Rayleigh index and unsteady response of the injector were studied in detail. Special emphasis was given to the flame behavior, droplet trajectories, pressure evolutions, and formation of large-scale vortical structures during combustion instability in present air heater. Furthermore, in contrast to previous investigations, a new process is identified in the simulation that may feed energy into the acoustic mode and drive combustion instability.

HIGH-ENERGY NEUTRINOS FROM SOURCES IN CLUSTERS OF GALAXIES

ABSTRACT High-energy cosmic rays can be accelerated in clusters of galaxies, by mega-parsec scale shocks induced by the accretion of gas during the formation of large-scale structures, or by powerful sources harbored in clusters. Once accelerated, the highest energy particles leave the cluster via almost rectilinear trajectories, while lower energy ones can be confined by the cluster magnetic field up to cosmological time and interact with the intracluster gas. Using a realistic model of the baryon distribution and the turbulent magnetic field in clusters, we studied the propagation and hadronic interaction of high-energy protons in the intracluster medium. We report the cumulative cosmic-ray and neutrino spectra generated by galaxy clusters, including embedded sources, and demonstrate that clusters can contribute a significant fraction of the observed IceCube neutrinos above 30 TeV while remaining undetected in high-energy cosmic rays and γ rays for reasonable choices of parameters and source scenarios.

A wavelet-based intermittency detection technique from PIV investigations in transitional boundary layers

The transition process of the boundary layer growing over a flat plate with pressure gradient simulating the suction side of a low-pressure turbine blade and elevated free-stream turbulence intensity level has been analyzed by means of PIV and hot-wire measurements. A detailed view of the instantaneous flow field in the wall-normal plane highlights the physics characterizing the complex process leading to the formation of large-scale coherent structures during breaking down of the ordered motion of the flow, thus generating randomized oscillations (i.e., turbulent spots). This analysis gives the basis for the development of a new procedure aimed at determining the intermittency function describing (statistically) the transition process. To this end, a wavelet-based method has been employed for the identification of the large-scale structures created during the transition process. Successively, a probability density function of these events has been defined so that an intermittency function is deduced. This latter strictly corresponds to the intermittency function of the transitional flow computed trough a classic procedure based on hot-wire data. The agreement between the two procedures in the intermittency shape and spot production rate proves the capability of the method in providing the statistical representation of the transition process. The main advantages of the procedure here proposed concern with its applicability to PIV data; it does not require a threshold level to discriminate first- and/or second-order time-derivative of hot-wire time traces (that makes the method not influenced by the operator); and it provides a clear evidence of the connection between the flow physics and the statistical representation of transition based on theory of turbulent spot propagation.

Dark matter perturbations and viscosity: A causal approach

The inclusion of dissipative effects in cosmic fluids modifies their clustering properties and could have observable effects on the formation of large scale structures. We analyse the evolution of density perturbations of cold dark matter endowed with causal bulk viscosity. The perturbative analysis is carried out in the Newtonian approximation and the bulk viscosity is described by the causal Israel-Stewart (IS) theory. In contrast to the non-causal Eckart theory, we obtain a third order evolution equation for the density contrast that depends on three free parameters. For certain parameter values, the density contrast and growth factor in IS mimic their behaviour in $\Lambda$CDM when $z \geq 1$. Interestingly, and contrary to intuition, certain sets of parameters lead to an increase of the clustering.

Time-sliced perturbation theory for large scale structure I: general formalism

We present a new analytic approach to describe large scale structure formation in the mildly non-linear regime. The central object of the method is the time-dependent probability distribution function generating correlators of the cosmological observables at a given moment of time. Expanding the distribution function around the Gaussian weight we formulate a perturbative technique to calculate non-linear corrections to cosmological correlators, similar to the diagrammatic expansion in a three-dimensional Euclidean quantum field theory, with time playing the role of an external parameter. For the physically relevant case of cold dark matter in an Einstein-de Sitter universe, the time evolution of the distribution function can be found exactly and is encapsulated by a time-dependent coupling constant controlling the perturbative expansion. We show that all building blocks of the expansion are free from spurious infrared enhanced contributions that plague the standard cosmological perturbation theory. This paves the way towards the systematic resummation of infrared effects in large scale structure formation. We also argue that the approach proposed here provides a natural framework to account for the influence of short-scale dynamics on larger scales along the lines of effective field theory.

Transition to geostrophic convection: the role of the boundary conditions

Rotating Rayleigh–Bénard convection, the flow in a rotating fluid layer heated from below and cooled from above, is used to analyse the transition to the geostrophic regime of thermal convection. In the geostrophic regime, which is of direct relevance to most geo- and astrophysical flows, the system is strongly rotating while maintaining a sufficiently large thermal driving to generate turbulence. We directly simulate the Navier–Stokes equations for two values of the thermal forcing, i.e. $Ra=10^{10}$ and $Ra=5\times 10^{10}$, at constant Prandtl number $Pr=1$, and vary the Ekman number in the range $Ek=1.3\times 10^{-7}$ to $Ek=2\times 10^{-6}$, which satisfies both requirements of supercriticality and strong rotation. We focus on the differences between the application of no-slip versus stress-free boundary conditions on the horizontal plates. The transition is found at roughly the same parameter values for both boundary conditions, i.e. at $Ek\approx 9\times 10^{-7}$ for $Ra=1\times 10^{10}$ and at $Ek\approx 3\times 10^{-7}$ for $Ra=5\times 10^{10}$. However, the transition is gradual and it does not exactly coincide in $Ek$ for different flow indicators. In particular, we report the characteristics of the transitions in the heat-transfer scaling laws, the boundary-layer thicknesses, the bulk/boundary-layer distribution of dissipations and the mean temperature gradient in the bulk. The flow phenomenology in the geostrophic regime evolves differently for no-slip and stress-free plates. For stress-free conditions, the formation of a large-scale barotropic vortex with associated inverse energy cascade is apparent. For no-slip plates, a turbulent state without large-scale coherent structures is found; the absence of large-scale structure formation is reflected in the energy transfer in the sense that the inverse cascade, present for stress-free boundary conditions, vanishes.

About Dark Energy and Dark Matter in a Three-Dimensional Quantum Vacuum Model

A model of a three-dimensional quantum vacuum based on Planck energy density as a universal property of a granular space is suggested. The possibility to provide an unifying explanation of dark matter and dark energy as phenomena linked with the fluctuations of the three-dimensional quantum vacuum is explored. The changes and fluctuations of the quantum vacuum energy density generate a curvature of space–time similar to the curvature produced by a “dark energy” density. The formation of large scale structures in the universe associated to the flattening of the orbital speeds of the spiral galaxies can be explained in terms of primary fluctuations of the quantum vacuum energy density without attracting the idea of dark matter.

Impact of continuous particle injection on generation and decay of the magnetic field in collisionless shocks

We present numerical simulations of the magnetic field turbulence in collisionless electron-positron plasma with continuous injection of new pairs, which maintains anisotropy in the particle distribution over long time. {With these simulations we follow evolution of a small (and therefore uniform) region in the fluid comoving frame modelling} generation and decay of the magnetic field in shocks, where the upstream is modified by two-photon pair production due to self-absorption of the shock's high-energy radiation. We find that the overall picture of magnetic field build-up is consistent with development of Weibel instability. However, the long-term injection of anisotropic pairs in the upstream leads to formation of large-scale structures in the magnetic field, while the small-scale structures are almost absent. We find that being amplified at the shock front this magnetic field mostly preserves its large spatial scale and then slowly decays in the downstream on a timescale approximately equal to duration of the injection phase. The observed decay of the magnetic field is in exceptionally good agreement with predictions of the so-called phase mixing model. Generation of the long-lived magnetic field in relativistic collisionless shocks with injection-modified upstream explains how they can efficiently produce the synchrotron radiation in Gamma-Ray Bursts.

ETHOS – an effective theory of structure formation: dark matter physics as a possible explanation of the small-scale CDM problems

We present the first simulations within an effective theory of structure formation (ETHOS), which includes the effect of interactions between dark matter and dark radiation on the linear initial power spectrum and dark matter self-interactions during non-linear structure formation. We simulate a Milky Way-like halo in four different dark matter models and the cold dark matter case. Our highest resolution simulation has a particle mass of $2.8\times 10^4\,{\rm M}_\odot$ and a softening length of $72.4\,{\rm pc}$. We demonstrate that all alternative models have only a negligible impact on large scale structure formation. On galactic scales, however, the models significantly affect the structure and abundance of subhaloes due to the combined effects of small scale primordial damping in the power spectrum and late time self-interactions. We derive an analytic mapping from the primordial damping scale in the power spectrum to the cutoff scale in the halo mass function and the kinetic decoupling temperature. We demonstrate that certain models within this extended effective framework that can alleviate the too-big-to-fail and missing satellite problems simultaneously, and possibly the core-cusp problem. The primordial power spectrum cutoff of our models naturally creates a diversity in the circular velocity profiles, which is larger than that found for cold dark matter simulations. We show that the parameter space of models can be constrained by contrasting model predictions to astrophysical observations. For example, some models may be challenged by the missing satellite problem if baryonic processes were to be included and even over-solve the too-big-to-fail problem; thus ruling them out.

Flow and Acoustics of Clustered Rockets During Startup

The plume produced by a cluster of two large-area-ratio thrust-optimized parabolic contour nozzles is visualized over a range of nozzle pressure ratios by way of retroreflective shadowgraphy. Both nozzles exhibit free-shock separated flow, restricted-shock separated flow, and an end-effects regime before flowing full. Transient (startup) operations of the nozzles are studied, with the primary focus being the pulsations that form during the end-effects regime. This occurs at a pressure ratio of 37 for these nozzles and is associated with elevated sound levels in the immediate vicinity of the nozzles and vehicle. The shadowgraphy images reveal the formation of turbulent large-scale structures, on the order of the nozzle diameter, during the end-effects regime. These large-scale structures are driven by the intermittent opening of the last trapped annular separation bubble to the ambient and grow rapidly within the first two nozzle diameters.

Renormalizing a viscous fluid model for large scale structure formation

Using the Stochastic Adhesion Model (SAM) as a simple toy model for cosmic structure formation, we study renormalization and the removal of the cutoff dependence from loop integrals in perturbative calculations. SAM shares the same symmetry with the full system of continuity+Euler equations and includes a viscosity term and a stochastic noise term, similar to the effective theories recently put forward to model CDM clustering. We show in this context that if the viscosity and noise terms are treated as perturbative corrections to the standard eulerian perturbation theory, they are necessarily non-local in time. To ensure Galilean Invariance higher order vertices related to the viscosity and the noise must then be added and we explicitly show at one-loop that these terms act as counter terms for vertex diagrams. The Ward Identities ensure that the non-local-in-time theory can be renormalized consistently. Another possibility is to include the viscosity in the linear propagator, resulting in exponential damping at high wavenumber. The resulting local-in-time theory is then renormalizable to one loop, requiring less free parameters for its renormalization.

WSPEC: A Waveguide Filter-Bank Focal Plane Array Spectrometer for Millimeter Wave Astronomy and Cosmology

Imaging and spectroscopy at (sub-)millimeter wavelengths are key frontiers in astronomy and cosmology. Large area spectral surveys with moderate spectral resolution (R=50-200) will be used to characterize large scale structure and star formation through intensity mapping surveys in emission lines such as the CO rotational transitions. Such surveys will also be used to study the SZ effect, and will detect the emission lines and continuum spectrum of individual objects. WSPEC is an instrument proposed to target these science goals. It is a channelizing spectrometer realized in rectangular waveguide, fabricated using conventional high-precision metal machining. Each spectrometer is coupled to free space with a machined feed horn, and the devices are tiled into a 2D array to fill the focal plane of the telescope. The detectors will be aluminum Lumped-Element Kinetic Inductance Detectors (LEKIDs). To target the CO lines and SZ effect, we will have bands at 135-175 GHz and 190-250 GHz, each Nyquist-sampled at R~200 resolution. Here we discuss the instrument concept and design, and successful initial testing of a WR10 (i.e. 90 GHz) prototype spectrometer. We recently tested a WR5 (180 GHz) prototype to verify that the concept works at higher frequencies, and also designed a resonant backshort structure that may further increase the optical efficiency. We are making progress towards integrating a spectrometer with a LEKID array and deploying a prototype device to a telescope for first light.

Multi-fractal analysis and lacunarity spectrum of the dark matter haloes in the SDSS-DR7

The dark matter halo distribution of the nearby universe is used to study the fractal behaviour in the proximate universe. The data, which is based on four volume-limited galaxy samples was obtained by Muñoz-Cuartas and Mueller (2012) from the Seventh Data Release of the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS-DR7). In order to know the fractal behaviour of the observed universe, from the initial sample which contains 412,468 galaxies and 339,505 dark matter haloes were used as input for the fractal calculations. Using this data we use the sliding-window technique for the dark matter distribution and compute the multi-fractal dimension and the lacunarity spectrum and use it to study its dependence on radial distance in every sample.The transition to homogeneity is not observed in the dark matter halo distribution obtained from the SDSS-DR7 volume-limited galaxy samples; in its place the dark matter halo distribution exhibits a persistent multi-fractal behaviour where the measured dimension does not arrive at the value of the physical dimension of the space, for all structure parameter values of the analysed set, at least up to radial distances of the ordered from 165 Mpc/h from the available centres of each sample. Our results and their implications are discussed in the context of the formation of large-scale structures in the universe.

RADIO AND X-RAY SHOCKS IN CLUSTERS OF GALAXIES

Radio relics detected in the outskirts of galaxy clusters are thought to trace radio-emitting relativistic electrons accelerated at cosmological shocks. In this study, using the cosmological hydrodynamic simulation data for the large-scale structure formation and adopting a diffusive shock acceleration (DSA) model for the production of cosmic-ray (CR) electrons, we construct mock radio and X-ray maps of simulated galaxy clusters that are projected in the sky plane. Various properties of shocks and radio relics, including the shock Mach number, radio spectral index and luminosity are extracted from the synthetic maps and compared with observations. A substantial fraction of radio and X-ray shocks identified in these maps involve multiple shock surfaces along line of sights (LoSs), and the morphology of shock distributions in the maps depends on the projection direction. Among multiple shocks in a given LoS, radio observations tend to pick up stronger shocks with flatter radio spectra, while X-ray observations preferentially select weaker shocks with larger kinetic energy flux. As a result, the shock Mach numbers and locations derived from radio and X-ray observations could differ from each other in some cases. We also find that the distributions of the spectral index and radio power of the synthetic radio relics are somewhat inconsistent with those of observed real relics; a bit more radio relics have been observed closer to the cluster core and with steeper spectral indices. We suggest the inconsistency could be explained, if very weak shocks with $M_s \la 2$ accelerate CR electrons more efficiently, compared to the DSA model adopted here.

Sterile neutrinos with secret interactions—lasting friendship with cosmology

Sterile neutrinos with mass ≃ 1 eV and order 10% mixing with active neutrinos have been proposed as a solution to anomalies in neutrino oscillation data, but are tightly constrained by cosmological limits. It was recently shown that these constraints are avoided if sterile neutrinos couple to a new MeV-scale gauge boson A′. However, even this scenario is restricted by structure formation constraints when A′-mediated collisional processes lead to efficient active-to-sterile neutrino conversion after neutrinos have decoupled. In view of this, we reevaluate in this paper the viability of sterile neutrinos with such ``secret'' interactions. We carefully dissect their evolution in the early Universe, including the various production channels and the expected modifications to large scale structure formation. We argue that there are two regions in parameter space—one at very small A′ coupling, one at relatively large A′ coupling—where all constraints from big bang nucleosynthesis (BBN), cosmic microwave background (CMB), and large scale structure (LSS) data are satisfied. Interestingly, the large A′ coupling region is precisely the region that was previously shown to have potentially important consequences for the small scale structure of dark matter halos if the A′ boson couples also to the dark matter in the Universe.

Mapping stellar content to dark matter haloes using galaxy clustering and galaxy–galaxy lensing in the SDSS DR7

The mapping between the distributions of the observed galaxy stellar mass and the underlying dark matter halos provides the crucial link from theories of large-scale structure formation to interpreting the complex phenomena of galaxy formation and evolution. We develop a novel statistical method, based on the Halo Occupation Distribution model (HOD), to solve for this mapping by jointly fitting the galaxy clustering and the galaxy-galaxy lensing measured from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS). The method, called the iHOD model, extracts maximum information from the survey by including ~80% more galaxies than the traditional HOD methods, and takes into account the incompleteness of the stellar mass samples in a statistically consistent manner. The derived stellar-to-halo mass relation not only explains the clustering and lensing of SDSS galaxies over almost four decades in stellar mass, but also successfully predicts the stellar mass functions observed in SDSS. Due to its capability of modelling significantly more galaxies, the iHOD is able to break the degeneracy between the logarithmic scatter in the stellar mass at fixed halo mass and the slope of the stellar-to-halo mass relation at high mass end, without the need to assume a strong prior on the scatter and/or use the stellar mass function as an input. We detect a decline of the scatter with halo mass, from 0.22 dex at below 10^{12} Msun to 0.18 dex at 10^{14} Msun. The model also enables stringent constraints on the satellite stellar mass functions at fixed halo mass, predicting a departure from the Schechter functional form in high mass halos. The iHOD model can be easily applied to existing and future spectroscopic datasets, greatly improving the statistical constraint on the stellar-to-halo mass relation compared to the traditional HOD methods within the same survey.

Examining the Emergence of Large-scale Structures in Collaboration Networks: Methods in Sociological Analysis

This article introduces a number of methods that can be useful for examining the emergence of large-scale structures in collaboration networks. The study contributes to sociological research by investigating how clusters of research collaborators evolve and sometimes percolate in a collaboration network. Typically, we find that in our networks, one cluster among the leading ones eventually wins the growth race by percolating through the network, spanning it and rapidly filling up a significant volume of it. We show how this process is governed by the dynamics of cluster growth in the network. When operating in a percolating regime, this class of networks possesses many useful functional properties, which have important sociological implications. We first develop the methodological tools to perform a study of the intrinsic clustering process. Then, to understand the actual large-scale structure formation process in the network, we apply the theoretical methods to simulate a number of realistic scenarios, including one based on actual data on the collaboration behavior of a sample of researchers. From the perspective of social science research, our methods can be adapted to suit the application domains of many other types of real social processes.

Scalar-fluid theories: cosmological perturbations and large-scale structure

Recently a new Lagrangian framework was introduced to describe interactions between scalar fields and relativistic perfect fluids. This allows two consistent generalizations of coupled quintessence models: non-vanishing pressures and a new type of derivative interaction. The implications of these to the formation of cosmological large-scale structure are uncovered here at the linear order. The full perturbation equations in the two cases are derived in a unified formalism and their Newtonian, quasi-static limit is studied analytically. Requiring the absence of an effective sound speed term in the coupled dark matter fluid restricts the Lagrangian to be a linear function of the matter number density. This leaves new potentially viable classes of both algebraically and derivatively interacting models wherein the coupling may impact the background expansion dynamics and imprint new signatures into the large-scale structure.