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Jorge Mastache

Publications and source records attributed to Jorge Mastache.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

Equilibrium Halo Solutions of the Gross-Pitaevskii-Poisson System: The Role of the Particle Number

We investigate stationary halo-like solutions of the Gross-Pitaevskii-Poisson (GPP) system, which describes self-gravitating Bose-Einstein condensates with repulsive self-interactions, as a dark matter model. The boson mass $m_\phi$, scattering length $a_s$, and total particle number $N$ are kept explicit, with $N$ treated as an independent macroscopic control parameter. Solving the stationary GPP equations over a broad parameter space, we identify ground-state, excited-state, and unbound solution branches according to their binding properties and nodal structure. The ground-state branch occupies a well-defined region of the $(m_\phi,N)$ plane whose location depends strongly on the self-interaction strength, whereas the excited-state and unbound regions are largely insensitive to the initial ansatz. From the converged solutions, we derive empirical scaling relations connecting the characteristic halo radius $R_{99}$ to $m_\phi$, $a_s$, and $N$. In the weakly interacting regime, the results reproduce the standard Schrodinger-Poisson mass-radius relation, while finite self-interactions reveal an intermediate regime in which gravity, quantum pressure, and repulsive interactions jointly determine the equilibrium structure. As an astrophysical application, we show that ground-state solutions can reproduce representative dwarf-galaxy rotation curves using only the solitonic component. We also examine the implications of current Lyman-$\alpha$ forest constraints and find that, although increasing $a_s$ shifts equilibrium solutions toward larger boson masses compatible with existing bounds, the resulting configurations do not reproduce the observed dwarf-galaxy kinematics. These results provide a systematic characterization of stationary GPP halos and establish a direct connection between microscopic particle properties and observable galactic quantities.

astro-ph.CO

Inverse-Scattering Reconstruction of Inflation from Scalar and Tensor Primordial Spectra

We develop an inverse-scattering framework to reconstruct the effective inflationary potentials governing scalar and tensor perturbations. By recasting the Mukhanov--Sasaki equation as a Schr\"odinger-like problem on the half-line, we identify the Bunch--Davies initial condition with the asymptotic Jost solution and show that the freeze-out amplitude of the growing mode is encoded in the corresponding Jost function. This allows the scalar and tensor primordial power spectra to be written in terms of $F^{(s)}_{\nu_s-\frac12}(k)$ and $F^{(t)}_{\nu_t-\frac12}(k)$, respectively, and leads to an inverse-scattering expression for the tensor-to-scalar ratio as a ratio of Jost amplitudes. We then test the reconstruction in the large-$k$ regime using the Born approximation, where the Marchenko equation becomes linear. As benchmarks, we consider a smooth quadratic potential and a step potential that transiently violates slow roll and generates localized features in the primordial spectra. The reconstructed effective potentials reproduce the dominant behavior of $z^{\prime\prime}/z$ and $a^{\prime\prime}/a$ for smooth slow-roll evolution, while localized discrepancies arise in the scalar sector when sharp features induce stronger scattering. Our results show that inverse scattering provides a physically transparent method for connecting features in the primordial spectra to the underlying inflationary dynamics, and that the Jost function acts as a sensitive diagnostic of departures from canonical slow-roll evolution.

astro-ph.CO

Spectral distortions in the decaying QCD dark matter scenario

We study the QCD--DM scenario by analyzing the imprint of energy injection from decaying dark-sector particles on the spectral distortions (SDs) of the Cosmic Microwave Background (CMB). We adopt a unified framework capable of describing both relativistic and non-relativistic particles, as well as fast and slow decay regimes. Within this approach, we model exponential, power-law, oscillatory, and two-step decays, computing the resulting $\mu$- and $y$-type distortions across the parameter space spanned by the confinement scale $a_c$, decay rate $\Gamma_\chi$, energy-transfer efficiency $\Sigma_\chi$, and velocity $v_{\chi c}$. We find that power-law, oscillatory, and cascade decays can be effectively mapped onto exponential models with appropriate rescaling. The dominant factors controlling SDs are the decay epoch and lifetime, with $v_{\chi c}$ becoming relevant only in the ultra-relativistic limit. FIRAS observations impose tight constraints on early energy injection, with $\mu$-type distortions placing the strongest bounds on $\Sigma_\chi$. Simultaneous matching of both $\mu_{\rm firas}$ and $y_{\rm firas}$ breaks the degeneracy between $\Gamma_\chi$ and $\Sigma_\chi$, localizing preferred decay rates around $\Gamma_\chi \lesssim (3.3-4.4)\times10^{-3}~{\rm yr}^{-1}$ and $\Sigma_\chi \lesssim 8.5\times10^{-4}$ for relativistic particles, while fast decays with $\Gamma_\chi \gtrsim 6.5~{\rm yr}^{-1}$ become observationally negligible. Our results show that CMB spectral distortions are a powerful probe of dark-sector dynamics. Future missions such as PIXIE or PRISM could extend current limits by several orders of magnitude and test previously inaccessible regions of parameter space.

astro-ph.CO

Non-Relativistic Boson Stars as Gravitational Quantum Droplets

We analyze the dynamics of a gravitational bounded cloud of generic bosons or a boson star in the non-relativistic regime, assuming from the very beginning that the boson star is in a Bose-Einstein condensed state. Also, we have taken into account multi-particle interactions within the boson star, which are described through the so-called logarithmic potential. Assuming energy conservation conditions at any time, we are able to describe the boson star as a some kind of gravitational quantum liquid, or more specifically, as a macroscopic gravitational quantum droplet. The assumption of logarithmic interactions, lead us to establish several scenarios in which the system is able to oscillates around the equilibrium radius. The approach analyzed in the present report shows that the interpretation of a boson star as a macroscopic gravitational quantum droplet can be applied to the dynamics analysis of a large number of systems on different size scales.

gr-qc

Spectral Distortion Signatures of Step-like Inflationary Potential

In this work, we analyze a power-law inflationary potential enhanced with a step that can introduce features in the primordial power spectrum. We focus on the computation of the Spectral Distortions (SD) induced by these features obtained from the inflationary dynamics. In this scenario, we explore the potential of upcoming experimental missions like PIXIE to detect the SD of the model within a power of $n = 2/3$, a power that agrees with recent tensor-to-scalar ratio constraints. The model offers insights into models with cosmological phases and different scalar field dynamics. Introducing a step in the inflaton potential leads to distinct features in the primordial power spectrum, such as oscillations and localized enhancements/suppressions at specific scales. We analyze the impact of three primary parameters$-\beta$, $\delta$, and $\phi_{\text{step}}-$on the amplitude and characteristics of the SD. The $\phi_{\rm step}$ places the onset of the oscillations in the primordial power spectrum. The $\beta$ parameter significantly influences the magnitude of the $\mu$-SD, with its increase leading to larger SD and vice versa. Similarly, the $\delta$ parameter affects the smoothness of the step in the potential, with larger values resulting in smaller SD. Our findings indicate a distinct parameter space defined by $0.02 <\delta/{\rm M_{pl}} \lesssim 0.026$, $0.10 \lesssim \beta < 0.23$, and $ 7.53 \lesssim \phi_{\rm step}/{\rm M_{pl}} \lesssim 7.55$, which produces SD potentially detectable by PIXIE. This region also corresponds to the maximum observed values of $\mu$ and $y$ SD, which in special cases are an order of magnitude larger than the expected for $\Lambda$CDM. However, we also identify parameter ranges where $\mu$ and $y$ SD may not be detectable due to the limitations of current observational technology.

astro-ph.CO

The impact of human expert visual inspection on the discovery of strong gravitational lenses

We investigate the ability of human 'expert' classifiers to identify strong gravitational lens candidates in Dark Energy Survey like imaging. We recruited a total of 55 people that completed more than 25$\%$ of the project. During the classification task, we present to the participants 1489 images. The sample contains a variety of data including lens simulations, real lenses, non-lens examples, and unlabeled data. We find that experts are extremely good at finding bright, well-resolved Einstein rings, whilst arcs with $g$-band signal-to-noise less than $\sim$25 or Einstein radii less than $\sim$1.2 times the seeing are rarely recovered. Very few non-lenses are scored highly. There is substantial variation in the performance of individual classifiers, but they do not appear to depend on the classifier's experience, confidence or academic position. These variations can be mitigated with a team of 6 or more independent classifiers. Our results give confidence that humans are a reliable pruning step for lens candidates, providing pure and quantifiably complete samples for follow-up studies.

astro-ph.GA

Spectral Distortions from Axion Monodromy Inflation

With the advent of new missions to probe spectral distortions of the cosmic microwave background with unprecedented precision, the study of theoretical predictions of these signals becomes a promising avenue to test our description of the early Universe. Meanwhile, axion monodromy still offers a viable framework to describe cosmic inflation. In order to explore new constraints on inflationary models based on axion monodromy while aiming at falsifying this scenario, we compute the spectral distortions predicted by this model, revealing oscillatory features that are compatible with Planck data. Further, the predicted distortions are up to 10% larger than the signals obtained from the fiducial LCDM model and are observable in principle. However, contrasting with the predictions of the simplest power-law inflationary potentials challenges the falsifiability of axion monodromy as it would require to reduce at least 100 times the current forecast error of the PIXIE satellite, which shall be possible at some projected observational setups.

astro-ph.CO

Non-relativistic Boson Stars as N-Body Quantum Systems

In the present work, we analyze the structural configuration of a collection of generic non-relativistic bosons forming a gravitational bound Bose-Einstein condensate that we interpreted as a non-relativistic boson star. We prove that the system's behavior can be obtained by analyzing its fundamental constituent's properties, i.e., the single particle properties. Additionally, we show that by expressing the corresponding Newtonian gravitational potential, under certain circumstances, as a harmonic oscillator potential ones, we can describe the conditions in which the non-relativistic boson star can form equilibrium configurations. In order to analyze the structural configuration related to the boson star, we employ four different \textit{ans\"atze} commonly used in the literature. The use of these \textit{ans\"atze} allows to compare the structural properties of the bosonic cloud or the boson star that leads to obtain several equilibrium configurations from compact objets matching to the size of typical stars to very gigantic systems comparable to the size of galaxy cluster dark matter halos. Finally, we show that these \textit{ans\"atze} predict, qualitatively speaking, the same structural and gravitational equilibrium configurations for different values of the parameters involved.

gr-qc

Cosmological signatures of a Rapid Diluted Energy Density

We study the cosmological signatures of having extra energy density, $ρ_{ex}$, beyond the $Λ$CDM model that dilutes rapidly, faster than radiation, at a scale factor $a_c$ with a corresponding mode $k_c=a_c H(a_c)$ crossing the horizon at that time. These types of models are motivated by phase transitions of the underlying elementary particles, for example the creation of protons and neutrons from almost massless quarks or the recently proposed Bound Dark Energy model. The rapidly dilution of $ρ_{ex}$ leaves distinctive imprints in the Universe not only in the expansion history with a clear impact on the acoustic scale, $r_s(a_cc)$, and angular distances, $D_A(a)$, but also in the matter and CMB power spectra. The rapidly diluted energy density $ρ_{ex}$, (RDED) generates characteristic signatures that can be observed with current and future precision cosmological data. In particular, we find a bump in the matter power spectrum compared to the standard $Λ$CDM. We identify the amplitude, width, and time scale of the bump to the physical properties of the transition. We study these effects with linear theory, standard perturbation theory, and the correlated impact on cosmological distances, allowing for independent measurements of these extensions of the standard $Λ$CDM model.

astro-ph.CO

The virial mode $k_v$ approach to Structure Formation with Warm Dark Matter

The small scale structure opens a window to constrain the dynamical properties of Dark Matter. Here we study the clustering of warm dark matter (WDM) in a semi-analytical approach and compared the linear power spectrum of WDM with cold dark matter (CDM) employing a new transfer function $T_v(a,k)$ in terms of the viral wave number $k_v=2π/λ_v$ corresponding to a structure with a viral radius $r_v=λ_v/2$, half the size of the free streaming scale radius $r_v=r_{fs}/2=λ_{fs}/4$. The virial mass $M_v$ contained in this structure corresponds to the lightest structure formed for a WDM particle becoming non-relativistic at the scale factor $a_{nr}$ with the corresponding $λ_{fs}$. The viral transfer function $T_v(a,k)=[1+ \left(k/k_v \right)^{β_v }]^{γ_v}$ is given in terms of the viral mode $k_v$ and two constant parameters $β_v$ and $γ_v$. We compare $T_v(a,k)$ with the Boltzmann code CLASS for WDM in the mass range 1-10 keV and we obtain the constraint $β_vγ_v=-18$ with $ν=1.020 \pm 0.025$. In the standard approach the transfer function is given by $T(a,k)=[1+\left(α\, k \right)^β]^γ$ \cite{Viel:2005qj} where $α$ encodes the dynamical properties of WDM and must be numerically adjusted by means of a Boltzmann code. In contrast, in our viral approach the physical quantity $k_v$ is simply given in terms of the free streaming scale $λ_{fs}$ and can be analytically determined. Our viral proposal has a good agreement with CLASS and improves slightly the results from the standard transfer function. To conclude, we have proposed a new physically motivated transfer function $T_v(a,k)$ where the properties of WDM are encoded in the viral wave number $k_v$, is straightforward to determine and improves the prediction of WDM clustering properties.

astro-ph.CO

Is a Bose-Einstein Condensate a good candidate for Dark Matter? A test with Galaxy Rotation Curves

We analyze the rotation curves that correspond to a Bose--Einstein Condensate (BEC) type halo surrounding a Schwarzschild--type black hole to confront predictions of the model upon observations of galaxy rotation curves. We model the halo as a Bose--Einstein condensate in terms of a massive scalar field that satisfies a Klein--Gordon equation with a self--interaction term. We also assume that the bosonic cloud is not self--gravitating. To model the halo, we apply a simple form of the Thomas--Fermi approximation that allows us to extract relevant results with a simple and concise procedure. Using galaxy data from a subsample of SPARC data base, we find the best fits of the BEC model by using the Thomas--Fermi approximation and perform a Bayesian statistics analysis to compare the obtained BEC's scenarios with the Navarro--Frenk--White (NFW) model as pivot model. We find that in the centre of galaxies we must have a supermassive compact central object, i.e., supermassive black hole, in the range of $\log_{10} M/M_\odot = 11.08 \pm 0.43$ which condensate a boson cloud with average particle mass $M_Φ= (3.47 \pm 1.43 )\times10^{-23}$ eV and a self--interaction coupling constant $\log_{10} (λ\; [{\rm pc}^{-1}]) = -91.09 \pm 0.74 $, i.e., the system behaves as a weakly interacting BEC. We compare the BEC model with NFW concluding that in general the BEC model using the Thomas--Fermi approximation is strong enough compared with the NFW fittings. Moreover, we show that BECs still well--fit the galaxy rotation curves and, more importantly, could lead to an understanding of the dark matter nature from first principles.

gr-qc

Bound Dark Matter (BDM) towards solving the Small Scale Structure Problem

Cosmological observations such as structure formation, CMB, and cosmic distance ladder set tight constraints to the amount and nature of dark matter (DM). In particular structure formation strongly constraints not only the amount of energy density, but also the time when DM became non-relativistic, anr. Standard cold and thermic warm DM particles have a smooth transition from being relativistic at high energies to a non-relativistic regime since the mass of these particles is constant while the velocity redshifts with the expansion of the universe. However, here we explore the possibility that the DM particle acquires a non-perturbative mass at a phase transition scale and a scale factor ac. This transition acquired a more fundamental meaning for the Bound Dark Matter (BDM) model because they describe a particle getting its mass through a non-perturbative process. These BDM particles may go from being relativistic to non-relativistic at ac, which implies an abrupt transition of the velocity of the particles vc at that time, affecting the equation of state and the cosmological evolution. Here we study the cosmological impact of the values of vc and the scale transition ac and they by reducing the free-streaming scale and therefore the small scale structure. Using CMB Plank, Supernovae SNIa, and BAO data, we constrain the valid region in the parameter space ac-vc putting upper bounds to ac but not restricting vc. For instance, the transition must be ac<$2.66\times10^{-6}$ for vc = 0. We also find that the free-streaming and the Jeans mass of the dark matter particle is highly influenced by the velocity vc, for example, a 3 keV WDM have a Jeans mass of Mfs=$1.97\times10^7$ Msun/h^3 but an equivalent BDM with the same anr but an abrupt transition in the velocity, vc~0 would have a Jeans mass of Mfs=$2.08x10^4$ Msun/h^3 which significantly changes the large scale structure formation.

astro-ph.CO

Analytic Fluid Approximation for Warm Dark Matter

We present the full evolution of the velocity of a massive particle, along with the equation of state we can compute the energy density and pressure evolution for the background evolution. It is also natural to compute the perturbation equations for any massive decoupled particle, i.e. warm dark matter (WDM) or neutrinos, in the fluid approximation. Using this approach we analytically compute the time when the WDM stop being relativistic, $a_{nr}$, which is 2.6\% different respect to the exact Boltzmann solution. Using the fluid approximation the matter power spectrum is computed faster and with great accuracy, the cut-off in structure formation due to the free-streaming ($\lambda_{fs}$) of the particle, characteristic for a WDM particle, is replicated in both matter power spectrum and halo mass function. With this approach, we have a deeper understanding of the WDM physics that lead us to show that the temperature the dark matter can be computed as a function of known properties of the WDM particle. This formulation can be integrated into comprehensive numerical modeling reasonable increasing the performance in the calculations, therefore, we analyze the parameter $a_{nr}$ in a $\Lambda$WDM model using CMB Planck data combined with matter power spectrum data set of WiggleZ, obtaining a lower bound for the WDM mass $m_{\rm wdm} = 70.3$ eV at 86\% confidence, this value is consistent with WiggleZ data set but more data at small scales or a combination with other observations are needed to stronger constrain the mass value of the WDM particle.

astro-ph.CO

Inflationary Dynamics Reconstruction via Inverse-Scattering Theory

The evolution of inflationary fluctuations can be recast as an inverse scattering problem. In this context, we employ the Gel'fand-Levitan method from inverse-scattering theory to reconstruct the evolution of both the inflaton field freeze-out horizon and the Hubble parameter during inflation. We demonstrate this reconstruction procedure numerically for a scenario of slow-roll inflation, as well as for a scenario which temporarily departs from slow-roll. The field freeze-out horizon is reconstructed from the accessible primordial scalar power spectrum alone, while the reconstruction of the Hubble parameter requires additional information from the tensor power spectrum. We briefly discuss the application of this technique to more realistic cases incorporating estimates of the primordial power spectra over limited ranges of scales and with specified uncertainties.

astro-ph.CO

Una revisión a la teoría básica del CMB (A review of the basic theory of CMB)

Spanish: La Cosmología esta progresando a pasos agigantados gracias a la cantidad espectacular de datos observacionales que se obtienen tanto de los experimentos en tierra como satélites. Un papel fundamental es desempeñdo por las observaciones del Fondo Cósmico de Microondas (CMB por sus siglas en inglé, Cosmic Microwave Background), la cual nos proporciona la prueba observacional más directa de los inicios del Universo. Las observaciones de la temperatura y las anisotropías en el CMB han jugado un papel fundamental en la definición del modelo cosmológico. Esta contribución tiene como objetivo resumir algunos de los conceptos básicos que hay detrás de la física del CMB. La mayor parte de los ingredientes del modelo cosmológico estándar son poco conocidos en términos de la física fundamental, por efemplo, la materia oscura y la energía oscura. Se discute cómo las observaciones actuales abordan algunas de estas cuestiones. English: The cosmic microwave background (CMB) provides the most direct observational test of the early universe. The observations of the temperature anisotropies in the CMB have played a key role in defining the cosmological model. This contribution aims to summarize some of the basic concepts behind the physics of the CMB. Most of the ingredients of the standard cosmological model are poorly understood in terms of fundamental physics, for instance, dark matter and dark energy. We discuss how current observations addressed some of these issues.

astro-ph.CO

Dark Matter Phase Transition Constrained at O(0.1) eV with LSB Rotation Curves

In order to unravel the nature of the dark matter (DM) we have proposed a particle-physics motivated model called Bound Dark Matter (BDM) that consist in DM massless particles above a threshold energy Ec that acquire mass below it due to nonperturbative methods. Therefore, the BDM model describes DM particles which are relativistic, hot dark matter (HDM) in the denser (inner) regions of galaxies and describes nonrelativistic, cold dark matter (CDM) where halo density is below rho_c = Ec^4. We test this model by fitting rotation curves from Low Surface Brightness (LSB) galaxies from The HI Nearby Galaxy Survey (THINGS). We use a particular DM cored profile that contains three parameters: a typical scale length (rs) and density (rho_0) of the halo, and a core radius (rc) stemming from the relativistic nature of the BDM model. Since the energy Ec parameterizes the phase transition due to the underlying particle physics model, it is independent on the details of galaxy and/or structure formation and therefore the DM profile parameters rs, rc, Ec are constrained, leaving only two free parameters. Through the results we agree with previous ones implying that cored profiles are preferred over the N-body motivated cuspy profiles. We also compute 2D likelihoods of the BDM parameters rc and Ec for the different galaxies and matter contents, and find an average galaxy core radius rc = 1.48kpc and a transition energy between hot and cold dark matter at Ec = 0.06 eV. The phase transition scale Ec is a new fundamental scale for our DM model well motivated theoretical origin from gauge group dynamics.

astro-ph.CO

Extra relativistic degrees of freedom without extra particles using Planck data

A recent number of analysis of cosmological data have shown indications for the presence of extra radiation beyond the standard model at equality and nucleosynthesis epoch, which has been usually interpreted as an effective number of neutrinos, Neff > 3.046. In this work we establish the theoretical basis for a particle physics-motivated model (Bound Dark Matter, BDM) which explain the need of extra radiation. The BDM model describes dark matter particles which are relativistic at a scale below a < ac, these particles acquire mass with an initial velocity, vc, at scales a > ac due to non-perturbative methods, as protons and neutrons do, this process is described by a time dependent equation of state, w_bdm(a). Owing to this behavior the amount of extra radiation change as a function of the scale factor, this entail that the extra relativistic degrees of freedom Nex may also vary as a function of the scale factor. This is favored by data at CMB and BBN epochs. We compute the range of values of the BDM model parameters, xc = ac*vc, that explain the values obtained for the 4He at BBN and Neff at equality. Combining different analysis we compute the value xc = 4.13x10^{-5} and vc = 0.37. We conclude that we can account for the apparent extra neutrino degrees of freedom Nex using a phase transition in the dark matter with a time dependent equation of state with no need for introducing extra relativistic particles.

gr-qc

Testing modified gravity at large distances with the HI Nearby Galaxy Survey's rotation curves

Recently a new -quantum motivated- theory of gravity has been proposed that modifies the standard Newtonian potential at large distances when spherical symmetry is considered. Accordingly, Newtonian gravity is altered by adding an extra Rindler acceleration term that has to be phenomenologically determined. Here we consider a standard and a power-law generalization of the Rindler modified Newtonian potential. The new terms in the gravitational potential are hypothesized to play the role of dark matter in galaxies. Our galactic model includes the mass of the integrated gas, and stars for which we consider three stellar mass functions (Kroupa, diet-Salpeter, and free mass model). We test this idea by fitting rotation curves of seventeen low surface brightness galaxies from The HI Nearby Galaxy Survey (THINGS). We find that the Rindler parameters do not perform a suitable fit to the rotation curves in comparison to standard dark matter profiles (Navarro-Frenk-White and Burkert) and, in addition, the computed parameters of the Rindler gravity show a high spread, posing the model as a nonacceptable alternative to dark matter.

astro-ph.GA