Cosmic Microwave Background Anisotropies: Beyond Standard Parameters

Details Cosmic Microwave Background Anisotropies: Beyond Standard Parameters Cosmic Microwave Background Anisotropies: Beyond Standard Parameters

2004-10-05

arxiv.org/abs/astro-ph/0410115v1

Thesis N. 3534, University of Geneva, Switzerland, 2004

Astronomy and Astrophysics

Astrophysics

PhD thesis, 231 pages, 50+ low resolution figures to comply with arXiv restrictions. Higher resolution version available from

Scientific paper

In the first part of this work, I review the theoretical framework of cosmological perturbation theory necessary to understand the generation and evolution of cosmic microwave background (CMB) anisotropies. Using analytical and numerical techniques, in the second part I describe the impact on the CMB power spectra of the standard cosmological parameters (such as the matter-energy budget of the Universe, its curvature, the amplitude and spectral properties of the primordial fluctuations, etc.). I introduce the most general type of initial conditions for the primordial perturbations, deriving a new analytical approximation for the neutrino isocurvature modes. In the third part, I discuss the issue of extracting constraints on the parameters of interest from the recent, high-quality CMB measurements, presenting the relevant statistical tools and focusing on the Fisher matrix analysis as a technique to produce reliable forecasts for the performance of future observations. I then apply those tools to the study of several possible extensions of the (currently) standard Lambda CDM model: the presence of extra relativistic particles, possible time variations of the fine structure constant, and the value of the primordial Helium mass fraction. I also use the CMB as a tool to study the very early Universe, via its dependence on the type of initial conditions: I relax the assumption of purely adiabatic initial conditions and discuss the observational consequences and constraints on the presence of general isocurvature modes.

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