arXiv subjects

Andrés N. Salcedo

Publications and source records attributed to Andrés N. Salcedo.

23 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

arXiv2019

Cosmology with galaxy-galaxy lensing on non-perturbative scales: Emulation method and application to BOSS LOWZ

We describe our nonlinear emulation (i.e., interpolation) framework that combines the halo occupation distribution (HOD) galaxy bias model with $N$-body simulations of nonlinear structure formation, designed to accurately predict the projected clustering and galaxy-galaxy lensing signals from luminous red galaxies (LRGs) in the redshift range $0.16 < z < 0.36$ on comoving scales $0.6 < r_p < 30$ \hMpc. The interpolation accuracy is $\lesssim 1-2$ per cent across the entire physically plausible range of parameters for all scales considered. We correctly recover the true value of the cosmological parameter $S_8 = ({σ_8}/{0.8228}) ({Ω_{\text{m}}}/{0.3107})^{0.6}$ from mock measurements produced via subhalo abundance matching (SHAM)-based lightcones designed to approximately match the properties of the SDSS LOWZ galaxy sample. Applying our model to Baryon Oscillation Spectroscopic Survey (BOSS) Data Release 14 (DR14) LOWZ galaxy clustering and galaxy-shear cross-correlation measurements made with Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) Data Release 8 (DR8) imaging, we perform a prototype cosmological analysis marginalizing over $w$CDM cosmological parameters and galaxy HOD parameters. We obtain a 4.4 per cent measurement of $S_8 = 0.847 \pm 0.037$, in $3.5σ$ tension with the Planck cosmological results of $1.00 \pm 0.02$. We discuss the possibility of underestimated systematic uncertainties or astrophysical effects that could explain this discrepancy.

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arXiv2019

Covariance matrices for galaxy cluster weak lensing: from virial regime to uncorrelated large-scale structure

Next-generation optical imaging surveys will revolutionise the observations of weak gravitational lensing by galaxy clusters and provide stringent constraints on growth of structure and cosmic acceleration. In these experiments, accurate modelling of covariance matrices of cluster weak lensing plays the key role in obtaining robust measurements of the mean mass of clusters and cosmological parameters. We use a combination of analytical calculations and high-resolution N-body simulations to derive accurate covariance matrices that span from the virial regime to linear scales of the cluster-matter cross-correlation. We validate this calculation using a public ray-tracing lensing simulation and provide a software package for calculating covariance matrices for a wide range of cluster and source sample choices. We discuss the relative importance of shape noise and density fluctuations, the impact of radial bin size, and the impact of off-diagonal elements. For a weak lensing source density 10 per square arcmin, shape noise typically dominates the variance on comoving scales less than 5 Mpc/h. However, for 60 per square arcmin, potentially achievable with future weak lensing experiments, density fluctuations typically dominate the variance at scales greater than 1 Mpc/h and remain comparable to shape noise on smaller scales.

astro-ph.CO↗

arXiv2019

Cosmology with Stacked Cluster Weak Lensing and Cluster-Galaxy Cross-Correlations

Cluster weak lensing is a sensitive probe of cosmology, particularly the amplitude of matter clustering $σ_8$ and matter density parameter $Ω_m$. The main nuisance parameter in a cluster weak lensing cosmological analysis is the scatter between the true halo mass and the relevant cluster observable, denoted $σ_{\ln Mc}$. We show that combining the cluster weak lensing observable $ΔΣ$ with the projected cluster-galaxy cross-correlation function $w_{p,cg}$ and galaxy auto-correlation function $w_{p,gg}$ can break the degeneracy between $σ_8$ and $σ_{\ln Mc}$ to achieve tight, percent-level constraints on $σ_8$. Using a grid of cosmological N-body simulations, we compute derivatives of $ΔΣ$, $w_{p,cg}$, and $w_{p,gg}$ with respect to $σ_8$, $Ω_m$, $σ_{\ln Mc}$ and halo occupation distribution (HOD) parameters describing the galaxy population. We also compute covariance matrices motivated by the properties of the Dark Energy Suvery (DES) cluster and weak lensing survey and the BOSS CMASS galaxy redshift survey. For our fiducial scenario combining $ΔΣ$, $w_{p,cg}$, and $w_{p,gg}$ measured over $0.3-30.0 \; h^{-1} \; \mathrm{Mpc}$, for clusters at $z=0.35-0.55$ above a mass threshold $M_c\approx 2\times 10^{14} \; h^{-1} \; \mathrm{M_{\odot}}$, we forecast a $1.4\%$ constraint on $σ_8$ while marginalizing over $σ_{\ln Mc}$ and all HOD parameters. Reducing the mass threshold to $1\times 10^{14} \; h^{-1} \; \mathrm{M_{\odot}}$ and adding a $z=0.15-0.35$ redshift bin sharpens this constraint to $0.8\%$. The small scale $(r_p < 3.0 \; h^{-1} \; \mathrm{Mpc})$ ``mass function'' and large scale $(r_p > 3.0 \; h^{-1} \; \mathrm{Mpc})$ ``halo-mass cross-correlation'' regimes of $ΔΣ$ have comparable constraining power, allowing internal consistency tests from such an analysis.

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arXiv2018

Spatial Clustering of Dark Matter Halos: Secondary Bias, Neighbor Bias, and the Influence of Massive Neighbors on Halo Properties

We explore the phenomenon commonly known as halo assembly bias, whereby dark matter halos of the same mass are found to be more or less clustered when a second halo property is considered, for halos in the mass range $3.7 \times 10^{11} \; h^{-1} \mathrm{M_{\odot}} - 5.0 \times 10^{13} \; h^{-1} \mathrm{M_{\odot}}$. Using the Large Suite of Dark Matter Simulations (LasDamas) we consider nine commonly used halo properties and find that a clustering bias exists if halos are binned by mass or by any other halo property. This secondary bias implies that no single halo property encompasses all the spatial clustering information of the halo population. The mean values of some halo properties depend on their halo's distance to a more massive neighbor. Halo samples selected by having high values of one of these properties therefore inherit a neighbor bias such that they are much more likely to be close to a much more massive neighbor. This neighbor bias largely accounts for the secondary bias seen in halos binned by mass and split by concentration or age. However, halos binned by other mass-like properties still show a secondary bias even when the neighbor bias is removed. The secondary bias of halos selected by their spin behaves differently than that for other halo properties, suggesting that the origin of the spin bias is different than of other secondary biases.

astro-ph.CO↗

arXiv2017

Emulating galaxy clustering and galaxy-galaxy lensing into the deeply nonlinear regime: methodology, information, and forecasts

The combination of galaxy-galaxy lensing (GGL) with galaxy clustering is one of the most promising routes to determining the amplitude of matter clustering at low redshifts. We show that extending clustering+GGL analyses from the linear regime down to $\sim 0.5 \, h^{-1}$ Mpc scales increases their constraining power considerably, even after marginalizing over a flexible model of non-linear galaxy bias. Using a grid of cosmological N-body simulations, we construct a Taylor-expansion emulator that predicts the galaxy autocorrelation $ξ_{\text{gg}}(r)$ and galaxy-matter cross-correlation $ξ_{\text{gm}}(r)$ as a function of $σ_8$, $Ω_m$, and halo occupation distribution (HOD) parameters, which are allowed to vary with large scale environment to represent possible effects of galaxy assembly bias. We present forecasts for a fiducial case that corresponds to BOSS LOWZ galaxy clustering and SDSS-depth weak lensing (effective source density $\sim 0.3$ arcmin$^{-2}$). Using tangential shear and projected correlation function measurements over $0.5 \leq r_p \leq 30 \, h^{-1}$ Mpc yields a 1.8% constraint on the parameter combination $σ_8Ω_m^{0.58}$, a factor of two better than a constraint that excludes non-linear scales ($r_p > 2 \, h^{-1}$ Mpc, $4 \, h^{-1}$ Mpc for $γ_t,w_p$). Much of this improvement comes from the non-linear clustering information, which breaks degeneracies among HOD parameters that would otherwise degrade the inference of matter clustering from GGL. Increasing the effective source density to $3$ arcmin$^{-2}$ sharpens the constraint on $σ_8Ω_m^{0.58}$ by a further factor of two. With robust modeling into the non-linear regime, low-redshift measurements of matter clustering at the 1-percent level with clustering+GGL alone are well within reach of current data sets such as those provided by the Dark Energy Survey.

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