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Olga Mena

Publications and source records attributed to Olga Mena.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources
arXiv2024

Lighting Dark Ages with Tomographic ISW Effect

The integrated Sachs-Wolfe effect (ISW) describes how CMB photons pick up a net blue or redshift when traversing the time-varying gravitational potentials between the last scattering surface and us. Deviations from its standard amplitude could hint new physics. We show that reconstructing the amplitude of the ISW effect as a function of the redshift may provide a unique tool to probe the gravity sector during the era of dark ages, inaccessible via other cosmological observables. Exploiting Planck CMB temperature, polarization and lensing observations, we find a $2σ$ deviation from the standard ISW amplitude at redshift $z=500$. Barrying a systematic origin, our findings could point to either possibly new physics or a departure from the standard picture of structure formation under the General Relativity framework. Assuming the simplest two-redshift-bin scenario, we ensure $38σ$ and $2σ$ evidences of the early and late ISW effects, respectively, despite a priori possible degeneracy with the CMB lensing amplitude. Using a multiple tomographic method, we present the first complete characterization of the ISW effect over space and time. Future tomographic ISW analyses are therefore crucial to probe the dark ages at redshifts otherwise unreachable via other probes.

astro-ph.CO↗
arXiv2023

Synergy between cosmological and laboratory searches in neutrino physics

The intersection of the cosmic and neutrino frontiers is a rich field where much discovery space still remains. Neutrinos play a pivotal role in the hot big bang cosmology, influencing the dynamics of the universe over numerous decades in cosmological history. Recent studies have made tremendous progress in understanding some properties of cosmological neutrinos, primarily their energy density. Upcoming cosmological probes will measure the energy density of relativistic particles with higher precision, but could also start probing other properties of the neutrino spectra. When convolved with results from terrestrial experiments, cosmology can become even more acute at probing new physics related to neutrinos or even Beyond the Standard Model (BSM). Any discordance between laboratory and cosmological data sets may reveal new BSM physics and/or suggest alternative models of cosmology. We give examples of the intersection between terrestrial and cosmological probes in the neutrino sector, and briefly discuss the possibilities of what different laboratory experiments may see in conjunction with cosmological observatories.

hep-ph↗
arXiv2023

On the dynamics of a dark sector coupling

Interacting dark energy models may play a crucial role in explaining several important observational issues in modern cosmology and also may provide a solution to current cosmological tensions. Since the phenomenology of the dark sector could be extremely rich, one should not restrict the interacting models to have a coupling parameter which is constant in cosmic time, rather allow for its dynamical behavior, as it is common practice in the literature when dealing with other dark energy properties, as the dark energy equation of state. We present here a compendium of the current cosmological constraints on a large variety of interacting models, investigating scenarios where the coupling parameter of the interaction function and the dark energy equation of state can be either constant or dynamical. For the most general schemes, in which both the coupling parameter of the interaction function and the dark energy equation of state are dynamical, we find $95\%$~CL evidence for a dark energy component at early times and slightly milder evidence for a dynamical dark coupling for the most complete observational data set exploited here, which includes CMB, BAO and Supernova Ia measurements. Interestingly, there are some cases where a dark energy component different from the cosmological constant case at early times together with a coupling different from zero today, can alleviate both the $H_0$ and $S_8$ tension for the full dataset combination considered here. Due to the energy exchange among the dark sectors, the current values of the matter energy density and of the clustering parameter $σ_8$ are shifted from their $Λ$CDM-like values. This fact makes future surveys, especially those focused on weak lensing measurements, unique tools to test the nature and the couplings of the dark energy sector.

astro-ph.CO↗
arXiv2023

Lensing impact on cosmic relics and tensions

Cosmological bounds on neutrinos and additional hypothetical light thermal relics, such as QCD axions, are currently among the most restrictive ones. These limits mainly rely on Cosmic Microwave Background temperature anisotropies. Nonetheless, one of the largest cosmological signatures of thermal relics is that on gravitational lensing, due to their free streaming behavior before their non-relativistic period. We investigate late time only hot relic mass constraints, primarily based on recently released lensing data from the Atacama Cosmology Telescope, both alone and in combination with lensing data from the Planck Satellite. Additionally, we consider other local probes, such as Baryon Acoustic Oscillations measurements, shear-shear, galaxy-galaxy, and galaxy-shear correlation functions from the Dark Energy Survey, and distance moduli measurements from Type Ia Supernovae. The tightest bounds we find are $\sum m_ν<0.43$ eV and $m_a<1.1$ eV, both at $95\%$ CL. Interestingly, these limits are still much stronger than those found on e.g. laboratory neutrino mass searches, reassessing the robustness of the extraction of thermal relic properties via cosmological observations. In addition, when considering lensing-only data, the significance of the Hubble constant tension is considerably reduced, while the clustering parameter $σ_8$ controversy is completely absent.

astro-ph.CO↗
arXiv2023

On a robust analysis of the growth of structure

Current cosmological tensions show that it is crucial to test the predictions from the canonical $Λ$CDM paradigm at different cosmic times. One very appealing test of structure formation in the universe is the growth rate of structure in our universe $f$, usually parameterized via the growth index $γ$, with $f\equiv Ω_m(a)^γ$ and $γ\simeq 0.55$ in the standard $Λ$CDM case. Recent studies have claimed a suppression of the growth of structure from a variety of cosmological observations, characterized by $γ>0.55$. By employing different self-consistent growth parameterizations schemes, we show here that $γ<0.55$, obtaining instead \emph{an enhanced growth of structure today}. This preference reaches the $3σ$ significance using Cosmic Microwave Background observations, Supernova Ia and Baryon Acoustic Oscillation measurements. The addition of Cosmic Microwave Background lensing data relaxes such a preference to the $2\,σ$ level, since a larger lensing effect can always be compensated with a smaller structure growth, or, equivalently, with $γ>0.55$. We have also included the lensing amplitude $A_{\rm L}$ as a free parameter in our data analysis, showing that the preference for $A_{\rm L}>1$ still remains, except for some particular parameterizations when lensing observations are included. We also not find any significant preference for a multipole dependence of $A_{\rm L}$. To further reassess the effects of a non-standard growth, we have computed by means of N-body simulations the dark matter density fields, the dark matter halo mass functions and the halo density profiles for different values of $γ$. Future observations from the Square Kilometer Array, reducing by a factor of three the current errors on the $γ$ parameter, could finally settle the issue.

astro-ph.CO↗
arXiv2023

Impact of the damping tail on neutrino mass constraints

Model-independent mass limits assess the robustness of current cosmological measurements of the neutrino mass scale. Consistency between high-multipole and low-multiple Cosmic Microwave Background observations measuring such scale further valuate the constraining power of present data. We derive here up-to-date limits on neutrino masses and abundances exploiting either the Data Release 4 of the Atacama Cosmology Telescope (ACT) or the South Pole Telescope polarization measurements from SPT-3G, envisaging different non-minimal background cosmologies and marginalizing over them. By combining these high-$\ell$ observations with Supernova Ia, Baryon Acoustic Oscillations (BAO), Redshift Space Distortions (RSD) and a prior on the reionization optical depth from WMAP data, we find that the marginalized bounds are competitive with those from Planck analyses. We obtain $\sum m_ν<0.139$ eV and $N_{\textrm{eff}}= 2.82\pm 0.25$ in a dark energy quintessence scenario, both at $95\%$ CL. These limits translate into $\sum m_ν<0.20$ eV and $N_{\textrm{eff}}= 2.79^{+0.30}_{-0.28}$ after marginalizing over a plethora of well-motivated fiducial models. Our findings reassess both the strength and the reliability of cosmological neutrino mass constraints.

astro-ph.CO↗
arXiv2023

How much do neutrinos live and weigh?

The next-generation water Cherenkov Hyper-Kamiokande detector will be able to detect thousands of neutrino events from a galactic Supernova explosion via Inverse Beta Decay processes followed by neutron capture on Gadolinium. This superb statistics provides a unique window to set bounds on neutrino properties, as its mass and lifetime. We shall explore the capabilities of such a future detector, constraining the former two properties via the time delay and the flux suppression induced in the Supernovae neutrino time and energy spectra. Special attention will be devoted to the statistically sub-dominant elastic scattering induced events, normally neglected, which can substantially improve the neutrino mass bound via time delays. When allowing for a invisible decaying scenario, the $95\%~$C.L. lower bound on $τ/m$ is almost one order of magnitude better than the one found with SN1987A neutrino events. Simultaneous limits can be set on both $m_ν$ and $τ_ν$, combining the neutrino flux suppression with the time-delay signature: the best constrained lifetime is that of $ν_1$, which has the richest electronic component. We find $τ_{ν_1}\gtrsim 4\times 10^5~$s at $95\%~$C.L. The tightest $95\%~$C.L. bound on the neutrino mass we find is $0.34~$eV, which is not only competitive with the tightest neutrino mass limits nowadays, but also comparable to future laboratory direct mass searches. Both mass and lifetime limits are independent on the mass ordering, which makes our results very robust and relevant.

hep-ph↗
arXiv2023

Do the Early Galaxies observed by JWST disagree with Planck's CMB polarization measurements?

The recent observations from the James Webb Space Telescope have led to a surprising discovery of a significant density of massive galaxies with masses of $M \ge 10^{10.5} M_{\odot}$ at redshifts of approximately $z\sim 10$. This corresponds to a stellar mass density of roughly $ρ_*\sim 10^6 M_{\odot} Mpc^{-3}$. Despite making conservative assumptions regarding galaxy formation, this finding may not be compatible with the standard $Λ$CDM cosmology that is favored by observations of CMB Anisotropies from the Planck satellite. In this paper, we confirm the substantial discrepancy with Planck's results within the $Λ$CDM framework. Assuming a value of $ε=0.2$ for the efficiency of converting baryons into stars, we indeed find that the $Λ$CDM model is excluded at more than $99.7 \%$ confidence level (C.L.). An even more significant exclusion is found for $ε\sim 0.1$, while a better agreement, but still in tension at more than $95 \%$, is obtained for $ε=0.32$. This tension, as already discussed in the literature, could arise either from systematics in the JWST measurements or from new physics. Here, as a last-ditch effort, we point out that disregarding the large angular scale polarization obtained by Planck, which allows for significantly larger values of the matter clustering parameter $σ_8$, could lead to better agreement between Planck and JWST within the $Λ$CDM framework. Interestingly, the model compatible with Planck temperature-only data and JWST observation also favors a higher Hubble constant $H_0=69.0\pm1.1$ km/s/Mpc at $68\%$ C.L., in better agreement with observations based on SN-Ia luminosity distances.

astro-ph.CO↗
arXiv2023

Joint measurement of the ultra-high-energy neutrino spectrum and cross section

Soon, a new generation of neutrino telescopes, presently under planning, will target the discovery of ultra-high-energy (UHE) neutrinos of cosmic origin, with energies higher than 100 PeV, that promise unique insight into astrophysics and particle physics. Yet, predictions of the UHE neutrino flux and interaction cross section -- whose measurement is co-dependent -- are laden with significant uncertainty that, if unaddressed, could misrepresent the capabilities to measure one or the other. To address this, we advocate for the joint measurement of the UHE neutrino spectrum and neutrino-nucleon cross section, including of their energy dependence, without assuming prior knowledge of either. We illustrate our methods by adopting empirical parametrizations of the neutrino spectrum, in forecasts geared to the planned radio array of the IceCube-Gen2 neutrino telescope. We warn against using simple parametrizations -- a simple power law or one augmented with an exponential cut-off -- that might fail to capture features of the spectrum that are commonplace in the predictions. We argue instead for the use of flexible parametrizations -- a piecewise power law or an interpolating polynomial -- that ensure accuracy. We report loose design targets for the detector energy and angular resolution that are compatible with those under present consideration.

astro-ph.HE↗
arXiv2023

A Consistent View of Interacting Dark Energy from Multiple CMB Probes

We analyze a cosmological model featuring an interaction between dark energy and dark matter in light of the measurements of the Cosmic Microwave Background released by three independent experiments: the most recent data by the Planck satellite and the Atacama Cosmology Telescope, and WMAP (9-year data). We show that different combinations of the datasets provide similar results, always favoring an interacting dark sector with a $95\%$~CL significance in the majority of the cases. Remarkably, such a preference remains consistent when cross-checked through independent probes, while always yielding a value of the expansion rate $H_0$ consistent with the local distance ladder measurements. We investigate the source of this preference by scrutinizing the angular power spectra of temperature and polarization anisotropies as measured by different experiments.

astro-ph.CO↗
arXiv2023

CMB and Lyman-$α$ constraints on dark matter decays to photons

Dark matter energy injection in the early universe modifies both the ionization history and the temperature of the intergalactic medium. In this work, we improve the CMB bounds on sub-keV dark matter and extend previous bounds from Lyman-$α$ observations to the same mass range, resulting in new and competitive constraints on axion-like particles (ALPs) decaying into two photons. The limits depend on the underlying reionization history, here accounted self-consistently by our modified version of the publicly available {\tt DarkHistory} and {\tt CLASS} codes. Future measurements such as the ones from the CMB-S4 experiment may play a crucial, leading role in the search for this type of light dark matter candidates.

astro-ph.CO↗
arXiv2023

On the dark radiation role in the Hubble constant tension

Dark radiation, parameterized in terms of $N_{\rm eff}$, has been considered many times in the literature as a possible remedy in alleviating the Hubble constant ($H_0$) tension. We review here the effect of such an extra dark radiation component in the different cosmological observables, focusing mostly on $H_0$. While a larger value of $N_{\rm eff}$ automatically implies a larger value of the Hubble constant, and one would naively expect that such a simple scenario provides a decent solution, more elaborated models are required. Light sterile neutrinos or neutrino asymmetries are among the first-order corrections to the most economical (tree-level) massless dark radiation scenario. However, they are not fully satisfactory in solving the $H_0$ issue. We devote here special attention to second-order corrections: some interacting scenarios, such as those with new dark radiation degrees of freedom that exhibit a non-free streaming nature are highly satisfactory alternative cosmologies where to solve the Hubble constant tension. Models with self-interacting sterile neutrinos and/or majorons, both well-motivated beyond the Standard Model particles, will be discussed along our assessment.

astro-ph.CO↗
arXiv2023

A novel model-marginalized cosmological bound on the QCD axion mass

We present model-marginalized limits on mixed hot dark matter scenarios, which consider both thermal neutrinos and thermal QCD axions. A novel aspect of our analyses is the inclusion of small-scale Cosmic Microwave Background (CMB) observations from the Atacama Cosmology Telescope (ACT) and the South Pole Telescope (SPT), together with those from the Planck satellite and Baryon Acoustic Oscillation (BAO) data. After marginalizing over a number of well-motivated non-minimal background cosmologies, the tightest $95\%$ CL upper bound we obtain is $0.21$ eV, both for $\sum m_ν$ and $m_{\rm a}$, from the combination of ACT, Planck and BAO measurements. Restricting the analyses to the standard $Λ$CDM picture, we find $\sum m_ν<0.16$ eV and $m_{\rm a}<0.18$ eV, both at $95\%$ CL. Interestingly, the best background cosmology is never found within the minimal $Λ$CDM plus hot relics, regardless of the data sets exploited in the analyses. The combination of Planck with either BAO, SPT or ACT prefers a universe with a non-zero value of the running in the primordial power spectrum with strong evidence. Small-scale CMB probes, both alone and combined with BAO, either prefer, with substantial evidence, non-flat universes (as in the case of SPT) or a model with a time varying dark energy component (as in the case of ACT).

astro-ph.CO↗
arXiv2023

Quantifying the tension between cosmological and terrestrial constraints on neutrino masses

The sensitivity of cosmology to the total neutrino mass scale $Σm_ν$ is approaching the minimal values required by oscillation data. We study quantitatively possible tensions between current and forecasted cosmological and terrestrial neutrino mass limits by applying suitable statistical tests such as Bayesian suspiciousness, parameter goodness-of-fit tests, or a parameter difference test. In particular, the tension will depend on whether the normal or the inverted neutrino mass ordering is assumed. We argue, that it makes sense to reject inverted ordering from the cosmology/oscillation comparison only if data are consistent with normal ordering. Our results indicate that, in order to reject inverted ordering with this argument, an accuracy on the sum of neutrino masses $σ({m_ν})$ of better than 0.02~eV would be required from future cosmological observations.

hep-ph↗
arXiv2023

Is the Harrison-Zel'dovich spectrum coming back? ACT preference for $n_s \sim 1$ and its discordance with Planck

The Data Release 4 of the Atacama Cosmology Telescope (ACT) shows an agreement with an Harrison-Zel'dovich primordial spectrum ($n_s=1.009 \pm 0.015$), introducing a tension with a significance of $99.3\%$ CL with the results from the Planck satellite. The discrepancy on the value of the scalar spectral index is neither alleviated with the addition of large scale structure information nor with the low multipole polarization data. We discuss possible avenues to alleviate the tension relying on either neglecting polarization measurements from ACT or in extending different sectors of the theory.

astro-ph.CO↗
arXiv2022

Non-unitary three-neutrino mixing in the early Universe

Deviations from unitarity in the three-neutrino mixing canonical picture are expected in many physics scenarios beyond the Standard Model. The mixing of new heavy neutral leptons with the three light neutrinos would in principle modify the strength and flavour structure of charged-current and neutral-current interactions with matter. Non-unitarity effects would therefore have an impact on the neutrino decoupling processes in the early Universe and on the value of the effective number of neutrinos, $N_{\rm eff}$. We calculate the cosmological energy density in the form of radiation with a non-unitary neutrino mixing matrix, addressing the possible interplay between parameters. Highly accurate measurements of $N_{\rm eff}$ from forthcoming cosmological observations can provide independent and complementary limits on the departures from unitarity. For completeness, we relate the scenario of small deviations from unitarity to non-standard neutrino interactions and compare the forecasted constraints to other existing limits in the literature.

hep-ph↗
arXiv2022

Non-standard neutrino cosmology dilutes the lensing anomaly

Despite the impressive success of the standard cosmological model, several anomalies defy its triumph. Among them is the so-called lensing anomaly: the Planck satellite observes stronger CMB gravitational lensing than expected. The role of neutrinos in this anomaly has been mostly overlooked, despite their key role in CMB lensing, because in the standard scenario they tend to increase the tension. Here, we show that this strongly depends on the assumed neutrino equation of state. We demonstrate that if neutrinos have yet undiscovered long-range interactions, the lensing pattern is significantly affected, rendering the lensing anomaly as a statistical fluctuation. Our results thus open up a window to link anomalous CMB lensing with present and future cosmological, astrophysical, and laboratory measurements of neutrino properties.

astro-ph.CO↗
arXiv2022

An absolute $ν$ mass measurement with the DUNE experiment

Time of flight delay in the supernova neutrino signal offers a unique tool to set model-independent constraints on the absolute neutrino mass. The presence of a sharp time structure during a first emission phase, the so-called neutronization burst in the electron neutrino flavor time distribution, makes this channel a very powerful one. Large liquid argon underground detectors will provide precision measurements of the time dependence of the electron neutrino fluxes. We derive here a new $ν$ mass sensitivity attainable at the future DUNE far detector from a future supernova collapse in our galactic neighborhood, finding a sub-eV reach under favorable scenarios. These values are competitive with those expected for laboratory direct neutrino mass searches.

hep-ph↗