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Dawson, K. S. et al, de Putter, R., & Mena, O. (2013). The Baryon Oscillation Spectroscopic Survey of SDSS-III. Astron. J., 145(1), 10–41pp.
Abstract: The Baryon Oscillation Spectroscopic Survey (BOSS) is designed to measure the scale of baryon acoustic oscillations (BAO) in the clustering of matter over a larger volume than the combined efforts of all previous spectroscopic surveys of large-scale structure. BOSS uses 1.5 million luminous galaxies as faint as i = 19.9 over 10,000 deg(2) to measure BAO to redshifts z < 0.7. Observations of neutral hydrogen in the Ly alpha forest in more than 150,000 quasar spectra (g < 22) will constrain BAO over the redshift range 2.15 < z < 3.5. Early results from BOSS include the first detection of the large-scale three-dimensional clustering of the Ly alpha forest and a strong detection from the Data Release 9 data set of the BAO in the clustering of massive galaxies at an effective redshift z = 0.57. We project that BOSS will yield measurements of the angular diameter distance d(A) to an accuracy of 1.0% at redshifts z = 0.3 and z = 0.57 and measurements of H(z) to 1.8% and 1.7% at the same redshifts. Forecasts for Ly alpha forest constraints predict a measurement of an overall dilation factor that scales the highly degenerate D-A(z) and H-1(z) parameters to an accuracy of 1.9% at z similar to 2.5 when the survey is complete. Here, we provide an overview of the selection of spectroscopic targets, planning of observations, and analysis of data and data quality of BOSS.
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De Bernardis, F., Martinelli, M., Melchiorri, A., Mena, O., & Cooray, A. (2011). Future weak lensing constraints in a dark coupled universe. Phys. Rev. D, 84(2), 023504–10pp.
Abstract: Probing the dark matter clustering and its evolution with weak lensing surveys constitutes a unique tool to constrain interacting dark energy models. We focus here on weak lensing forecasts from future Euclid and LSST-like surveys combined with the expected results from the ongoing Planck cosmic microwave background satellite experiment. We find that these future data could constrain the dimensionless coupling between dark matter and dark energy to be smaller than a few x 10(-2), improving the CMB-only constraint by at least 2 orders of magnitude. We also show that coupled cosmologies can substantially alter the constraints on cosmological parameters obtained from CMB experiments under the assumption of noninteracting cosmologies unless weak lensing data is considered.
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de Putter, R., Mena, O., Giusarma, E., Ho, S., Cuesta, A., Seo, H. J., et al. (2012). New Neutrino Mass Bounds from SDSS-III Data Release 8 Photometric Luminous Galaxies. Astrophys. J., 761(1), 12–12pp.
Abstract: We present neutrino mass bounds using 900,000 luminous galaxies with photometric redshifts measured from Sloan Digital Sky Survey III Data Release 8. The galaxies have photometric redshifts between z = 0.45 and z = 0.65 and cover 10,000 deg(2), thus probing a volume of 3 h(-3) Gpc(3) and enabling tight constraints to be derived on the amount of dark matter in the form of massive neutrinos. A new bound on the sum of neutrino masses Sigma m nu < 0.27 eV, at the 95% confidence level (CL), is obtained after combining our sample of galaxies, which we call “CMASS,” with Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe (WMAP) seven-year cosmic microwave background data and the most recent measurement of the Hubble parameter from the Hubble Space Telescope (HST). This constraint is obtained with a conservative multipole range of 30 < l < 200 in order to minimize nonlinearities, and a free bias parameter in each of the four redshift bins. We study the impact of assuming this linear galaxy bias model using mock catalogs and find that this model causes a small (similar to 1 sigma-1.5 sigma) bias in Omega(DM)h(2). For this reason, we also quote neutrino bounds based on a conservative galaxy bias model containing additional, shot-noise-like free parameters. In this conservative case, the bounds are significantly weakened, e. g., Sigma m(nu) < 0.38 eV (95% CL) for WMAP+HST+CMASS (l(max) = 200). We also study the dependence of the neutrino bound on the multipole range (l(max) = 150 versus l(max) = 200) and on which combination of data sets is included as a prior. The addition of supernova and/or baryon acoustic oscillation data does not significantly improve the neutrino mass bound once the HST prior is included. A companion paper describes the construction of the angular power spectra in detail and derives constraints on a general cosmological model, including the dark energy equation of state w and the spatial curvature Omega(K), while a second companion paper presents a measurement of the scale of baryon acoustic oscillations from the same data set. All three works are based on the catalog by Ross et al.
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de Putter, R., Wagner, C., Mena, O., Verde, L., & Percival, W. J. (2012). Thinking outside the box: effects of modes larger than the survey on matter power spectrum covariance. J. Cosmol. Astropart. Phys., 04(4), 019–31pp.
Abstract: Accurate power spectrum (or correlation function) covariance matrices are a crucial requirement for cosmological parameter estimation from large scale structure surveys. In order to minimize reliance on computationally expensive mock catalogs, it is important to have a solid analytic understanding of the different components that make up a covariance matrix. Considering the matter power spectrum covariance matrix, it has recently been found that there is a potentially dominant effect on mildly non-linear scales due to power in modes of size equal to and larger than the survey volume. This beat coupling effect has been derived analytically in perturbation theory and while it has been tested with simulations, some questions remain unanswered. Moreover, there is an additional effect of these large modes, which has so far not been included in analytic studies, namely the effect on the estimated average density which enters the power spectrum estimate. In this article, we work out analytic, perturbation theory based expressions including both the beat coupling and this local average effect and we show that while, when isolated, beat coupling indeed causes large excess covariance in agreement with the literature, in a realistic scenario this is compensated almost entirely by the local average effect, leaving only similar to 10% of the excess. We test our analytic expressions by comparison to a suite of large N-body simulations, using both full simulation boxes and subboxes thereof to study cases without beat coupling, with beat coupling and with both beat coupling and the local average effect. For the variances, we find excellent agreement with the analytic expressions for k < 0.2 hMpc(-1) at z = 0.5, while the correlation coefficients agree to beyond k = 0.4 hMpc(-1). As expected, the range of agreement increases towards higher redshift and decreases slightly towards z = 0. We finish by including the large-mode effects in a full covariance matrix description for arbitrary survey geometry and confirming its validity using simulations. This may be useful as a stepping stone towards building an actual galaxy (or other tracer's) power spectrum covariance matrix.
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de Salas, P. F., Forero, D. V., Gariazzo, S., Martinez-Mirave, P., Mena, O., Ternes, C. A., et al. (2021). 2020 global reassessment of the neutrino oscillation picture. J. High Energy Phys., 02(2), 071–36pp.
Abstract: We present an updated global fit of neutrino oscillation data in the simplest three-neutrino framework. In the present study we include up-to-date analyses from a number of experiments. Concerning the atmospheric and solar sectors, besides the data considered previously, we give updated analyses of IceCube DeepCore and Sudbury Neutrino Observatory data, respectively. We have also included the latest electron antineutrino data collected by the Daya Bay and RENO reactor experiments, and the long-baseline T2K and NO nu A measurements, as reported in the Neutrino 2020 conference. All in all, these new analyses result in more accurate measurements of theta (13), theta (12), Delta m212 and Delta m312. The best fit value for the atmospheric angle theta (23) lies in the second octant, but first octant solutions remain allowed at similar to 2.4 sigma. Regarding CP violation measurements, the preferred value of delta we obtain is 1.08 pi (1.58 pi) for normal (inverted) neutrino mass ordering. The global analysis still prefers normal neutrino mass ordering with 2.5 sigma statistical significance. This preference is milder than the one found in previous global analyses. These new results should be regarded as robust due to the agreement found between our Bayesian and frequentist approaches. Taking into account only oscillation data, there is a weak/moderate preference for the normal neutrino mass ordering of 2.00 sigma. While adding neutrinoless double beta decay from the latest Gerda, CUORE and KamLAND-Zen results barely modifies this picture, cosmological measurements raise the preference to 2.68 sigma within a conservative approach. A more aggressive data set combination of cosmological observations leads to a similar preference for normal with respect to inverted mass ordering, namely 2.70 sigma. This very same cosmological data set provides 2 sigma upper limits on the total neutrino mass corresponding to Sigma m(nu)< 0.12 (0.15) eV in the normal (inverted) neutrino mass ordering scenario. The bounds on the neutrino mixing parameters and masses presented in this up-to-date global fit analysis include all currently available neutrino physics inputs.
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de Salas, P. F., Gariazzo, S., Mena, O., Ternes, C. A., & Tortola, M. (2018). Neutrino Mass Ordering From Oscillations and Beyond: 2018 Status and Future Prospects. Front. Astron. Space Sci., 5, 36–50pp.
Abstract: The ordering of the neutrino masses is a crucial input for a deep understanding of flavor physics, and its determination may provide the key to establish the relationship among the lepton masses and mixings and their analogous properties in the quark sector. The extraction of the neutrino mass ordering is a data-driven field expected to evolve very rapidly in the next decade. In this review, we both analyse the present status and describe the physics of subsequent prospects. Firstly, the different current available tools to measure the neutrino mass ordering are described. Namely, reactor, long-baseline (accelerator and atmospheric) neutrino beams, laboratory searches for beta and neutrinoless double beta decays and observations of the cosmic background radiation and the large scale structure of the universe are carefully reviewed. Secondly, the results from an up-to-date comprehensive global fit are reported: the Bayesian analysis to the 2018 publicly available oscillation and cosmological data sets provides strong evidence for the normal neutrino mass ordering vs. the inverted scenario, with a significance of 3.5 standard deviations. This preference for the normal neutrino mass ordering is mostly due to neutrino oscillation measurements. Finally, we shall also emphasize the future perspectives for unveiling the neutrinomass ordering. In this regard, apart from describing the expectations from the aforementioned probes, we also focus on those arising from alternative and novel methods, as 21 cm cosmology, core-collapse supernova neutrinos and the direct detection of relic neutrinos.
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Di Valentino, E. et al, & Mena, O. (2021). Snowmass2021-Letter of interest cosmology intertwined II: The hubble constant tension. Astropart Phys., 131, 102605–8pp.
Abstract: The current cosmological probes have provided a fantastic confirmation of the standard A Cold Dark Matter cosmological model, which has been constrained with unprecedented accuracy. However, with the increase of the experimental sensitivity, a few statistically significant tensions between different independent cosmological datasets emerged. While these tensions can be in part the result of systematic errors, the persistence after several years of accurate analysis strongly hints at cracks in the standard cosmological scenario and the need for new physics. In this Letter of Interest we will focus on the 4.4 sigma – tension between the Planck estimate of the Hubble constant H-0 and the SH0ES collaboration measurements. After showing the H-0 evaluations made from different teams using different methods and geometric calibrations, we will list a few interesting models of new physics that could solve this tension and discuss how the next decade's experiments will be crucial.
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Di Valentino, E. et al, & Mena, O. (2021). Cosmology intertwined III: f sigma(8) and S-8. Astropart Phys., 131, 102604–6pp.
Abstract: The standard A Cold Dark Matter cosmological model provides a wonderful fit to current cosmological data, but a few statistically significant tensions and anomalies were found in the latest data analyses. While these anomalies could be due to the presence of systematic errors in the experiments, they could also indicate the need for new physics beyond the standard model. In this Letter of Interest we focus on the tension between Planck data and weak lensing measurements and redshift surveys, in the value of the matter energy density Omega(m), and the amplitude sigma(8) (or the growth rate f sigma(8)) of cosmic structure. We list a few promising models for solving this tension, and discuss the importance of trying to fit multiple cosmological datasets with complete physical models, rather than fitting individual datasets with a few handpicked theoretical parameters.
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Di Valentino, E. et al, & Mena, O. (2021). Snowmass2021-Letter of interest cosmology intertwined IV: The age of the universe and its curvature. Astropart Phys., 131, 102607–5pp.
Abstract: A precise measurement of the curvature of the Universe is of prime importance for cosmology since it could not only confirm the paradigm of primordial inflation but also help in discriminating between different early-Universe scenarios. Recent observations, while broadly consistent with a spatially flat standard A Cold Dark Matter (ACDM) model, show tensions that still allow (and, in some cases, even suggest) a few percent deviations from a flat universe. In particular, the Planck Cosmic Microwave Background power spectra, assuming the nominal likelihood, prefer a closed universe at more than 99% confidence level. While new physics could be at play, this anomaly may be the result of an unresolved systematic error or just a statistical fluctuation. However, since positive curvature allows a larger age of the Universe, an accurate determination of the age of the oldest objects provides a smoking gun in confirming or falsifying the current flat ACDM model.
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Di Valentino, E. et al, & Mena, O. (2021). Snowmass2021-Letter of interest cosmology intertwined I: Perspectives for the next decade. Astropart Phys., 131, 102606–4pp.
Abstract: The standard Lambda Cold Dark Matter cosmological model provides an amazing description of a wide range of astrophysical and astronomical data. However, there are a few big open questions, that make the standard model look like a first-order approximation to a more realistic scenario that still needs to be fully understood. In this Letter of Interest we will list a few important goals that need to be addressed in the next decade, also taking into account the current discordances present between the different cosmological probes, as the Hubble constant H-0 value, the sigma S-8(8) tension, and the anomalies present in the Planck results. Finally, we will give an overview of upgraded experiments and next-generation space-missions and facilities on Earth that will be of crucial importance to address all these questions.
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