arXiv subjects

Scott Dodelson

Publications and source records attributed to Scott Dodelson.

131 records · Page 8Linked to original sources

arXiv1993

Analysis of Small Scale MBR Anisotropy in the Presence of Foreground Contamination

Many of the current round of experiments searching for anisotropies in the MBR are confronting the problem of how to disentangle the cosmic signal from contamination due to galactic and intergalactic foreground sources. Here we show how commonly used likelihood function techniques can be generalized to account for foreground. Specifically we set some restrictions on the spectrum of foreground contamination but allow the amplitude to vary arbitrarily. The likelihood function thus generalized gives reasonable limits on the MBR anisotropy which, in some cases, are not much less restrictive than what one would get from more detailed modeling of the foreground. Furthermore, the likelihood function is exactly the same as one would obtain by simply projecting out foreground contamination and just looking at the reduced data set. We apply this generalized analysis to the recent medium angle data sets of ACME-HEMT and MAX. The resulting analysis constrains the one free parameter in the standard cold dark matter theory to be Q=18_-5^+8 microK. This best fit value, although in striking agreement with the normalization from COBE, is not a very good fit, with an overall chi^2/ degree of freedom =208/168. We also argue against three commonly used methods of dealing with foreground: (i) ignoring it completely; (ii) subtracting off a best fit foreground and treating the residuals as if uncontaminated; and (iii) culling data which appears to be contaminated by foreground.

astro-ph↗

arXiv1993

Re-Ionization and its Imprint on the Cosmic Microwave Background

Early reionization changes the pattern of anisotropies expected in the cosmic microwave background. To explore these changes, we derive from first principles the equations governing anisotropies, focusing on the interactions of photons with electrons. Vishniac (1987) claimed that second order terms can be large in a re-ionized Universe, so we derive equations correct to second order in the perturbations. There are many more second order terms than were considered by Vishniac. To understand the basic physics involved, we present a simple analytic approximation to the first order equation. Then turning to the sec- ond order equation, we show that the Vishniac term is indeed the only important one. We also present numerical results for a variety of ionization histories [in a standard cold dark matter Universe] and show quantitatively how the sig- nal in several experiments depends on the ionization history. The most pronounced indication of a re-ionized Universe would be seen in very small scale experiments; the expected signal in the Owens Valley experiment is smaller by a factor of order ten if the last scattering surface is at a redshift $z\simeq100$ as it would be if the Universe were re-ionized very early. On slightly larger scales, the expected signal in a re-ionized Universe {\it is} smaller than it would be with standard recombination, but only by a factor of two or so.

astro-ph↗

arXiv1993

Sterile Neutrinos as Dark Matter

The simplest model that can accomodate a viable nonbaryonic dark matter candidate is the standard electroweak theory with the addition of right-handed or sterile neutrinos. We reexamine this model and find that the sterile neutrinos can be either hot, warm, or cold dark matter. Since their only direct coupling is to left-handed or active neutrinos, the most efficient production mechanism is via neutrino oscillations. If the production rate is always less than the expansion rate, then these neutrinos will never be in thermal equilibrium. However, enough of them may be produced so that they provide the missing mass necessary for closure. We consider a single generation of neutrino fields $\left (ν_L,\,ν_R\right )$ with a Dirac mass, $μ$, and a Majorana mass for the right-handed components only, $M$. For $M\gg μ$ we show that the number density of sterile neutrinos is proportional to $μ^2/M$ so that the energy density today is {\it independent of} $M$. However $M$ is crucial in determining the large scale structure of the Universe. In particular, $M\simeq 0.1-1.0 {\rm ~keV}$ leads to warm dark matter and a structure formation scenario that may have some advantages over both the standard hot and cold dark matter scenarios.

hep-ph↗

arXiv1993

Microwave Anisotropies in the Light of COBE

The recent COBE measurement of anisotropies in the cosmic microwave background and the recent South Pole experiment of Gaier {\it et al.} offer an excellent opportunity to probe cosmological theories. We test a class of theories in which the Universe today is flat and matter dominated, and primordial perturbations are adiabatic parameterized by an index $n$. In this class of theories the predicted signal in the South Pole experiment depends not only on $n$, but also on the Hubble constant and the baryon density. For $n=1$ a large region of this parameter space is ruled out, but there is still a window open which satisfies constraints coming from COBE, measurements of the age of the Universe, the South Pole experiment, and big bang nucleosynthesis. Using the central values of the Hubble constant and baryon density favored by nucleosynthesis and age measurements, we find that, even if the COBE normalization drops by $1σ$, $n > 1.2$ is ruled out.

astro-ph↗

arXiv1992

How Effective is the Effective Potential?

Motivated by bubble nucleation in first order phase transitions, we question the validity of the effective potential for inhomogeneous configurations. In an attempt to get some insight into the importance of derivative terms, we analyze a simple model, a kink in (1+1) dimensions and zero temperature. We evaluate the energy shift from the quantum fluctuations about the non-uniform background ({\it i.e.}, the effective action) and compare it to the energy from the effective potential. Our results clearly show that for inhomogeneous configurations it may be inadequate to omit derivative terms and confine oneself to the effective potential. We then couple the kink field to an additional scalar field and perform the same comparison. The addition of the second field allows us to vary the mass of the fluctuations and their coupling to the underlying kink. If the mass of the second field is large, it does not feel the inhomogeneities in the kink field and consequently does not give rise to important derivative corrections in the effective action. In contrast, if the mass is small, derivative terms are significant and the effective potential fails. In the latter regime we can, however, rely on the Born approximation to calculate the effective action.

hep-ph↗