No Arabic abstract
We explore extensions to the $Lambda$CDM cosmology using measurements of the cosmic microwave background (CMB) from the recent SPT-SZ survey, along with data from WMAP7 and measurements of $H_0$ and BAO. We check for consistency within $Lambda$CDM between these datasets, and find some tension. The CMB alone gives weak support to physics beyond $Lambda$CDM, due to a slight trend relative to $Lambda$CDM of decreasing power towards smaller angular scales. While it may be due to statistical fluctuation, this trend could also be explained by several extensions. We consider running index (nrun), as well as two extensions that modify the damping tail power (the primordial helium abundance $Y_p$ and the effective number of neutrino species $N_{rm eff}$) and one that modifies the large-scale power due to the ISW effect (the sum of neutrino masses $sum m_ u$). These extensions have similar observational consequences and are partially degenerate when considered simultaneously. Of the 6 one-parameter extensions considered, we find CMB to have the largest preference for nrun with -0.046<nrun<-0.003 at 95% confidence, which strengthens to a 2.7$sigma$ indication of nrun<0 from CMB+BAO+$H_0$. Detectable non-zero nrun is difficult to explain in the context of single-field, slow-roll inflation models. We find $N_{rm eff}=3.62pm0.48$ for the CMB, which tightens to $N_{rm eff}=3.71pm0.35$ from CMB+BAO+$H_0$. Larger values of $N_{rm eff}$ relieve the mild tension between CMB, BAO and $H_0$. When the SZ selected galaxy cluster abundances ($rm{SPT_{CL}}$) data are also included, we obtain $N_{rm eff}=3.29pm0.31$. Allowing for $sum m_ u$ gives a 3$sigma$ detection of $sum m_ u$>0 from CMB+BAO+$H_0$+$rm{SPT_{CL}}$. The median value is $(0.32pm0.11)$ eV, a factor of six above the lower bound set by neutrino oscillation observations. ... [abridged]
We present measurements of secondary cosmic microwave background (CMB) anisotropies and cosmic infrared background (CIB) fluctuations using data from the South Pole Telescope (SPT) covering the complete 2540 sq.deg. SPT-SZ survey area. Data in the three SPT-SZ frequency bands centered at 95, 150, and 220 GHz, are used to produce six angular power spectra (three single-frequency auto-spectra and three cross-spectra) covering the multipole range 2000 < ell < 11000 (angular scales 5 > theta > 1). These are the most precise measurements of the angular power spectra at ell > 2500 at these frequencies. The main contributors to the power spectra at these angular scales and frequencies are the primary CMB, CIB, thermal and kinematic Sunyaev-Zeldovich effects (tSZ and kSZ), and radio galaxies. We include a constraint on the tSZ power from a measurement of the tSZ bispectrum from 800 sq.deg. of the SPT-SZ survey. We measure the tSZ power at 143 GHz to be DtSZ = 4.08 +0.58 -0.67 mu K^2 and the kSZ power to be DkSZ = 2.9 +- 1.3 mu K^2. The data prefer positive kSZ power at 98.1% CL. We measure a correlation coefficient of xi = 0.113 +0.057 -0.054 between sources of tSZ and CIB power, with xi < 0 disfavored at a confidence level of 99.0%. The constraint on kSZ power can be interpreted as an upper limit on the duration of reionization. When the post-reionization homogeneous kSZ signal is accounted for, we find an upper limit on the duration Delta z < 5.4 at 95% CL.
We report constraints on cosmological parameters from the angular power spectrum of a cosmic microwave background (CMB) gravitational lensing potential map created using temperature data from 2500 deg$^2$ of South Pole Telescope (SPT) data supplemented with data from Planck in the same sky region, with the statistical power in the combined map primarily from the SPT data. We fit the corresponding lensing angular power spectrum to a model including cold dark matter and a cosmological constant ($Lambda$CDM), and to models with single-parameter extensions to $Lambda$CDM. We find constraints that are comparable to and consistent with constraints found using the full-sky Planck CMB lensing data. Specifically, we find $sigma_8 Omega_{rm m}^{0.25}=0.598 pm 0.024$ from the lensing data alone with relatively weak priors placed on the other $Lambda$CDM parameters. In combination with primary CMB data from Planck, we explore single-parameter extensions to the $Lambda$CDM model. We find $Omega_k = -0.012^{+0.021}_{-0.023}$ or $M_{ u}< 0.70$eV both at 95% confidence, all in good agreement with results that include the lensing potential as measured by Planck over the full sky. We include two independent free parameters that scale the effect of lensing on the CMB: $A_{L}$, which scales the lensing power spectrum in both the lens reconstruction power and in the smearing of the acoustic peaks, and $A^{phi phi}$, which scales only the amplitude of the CMB lensing reconstruction power spectrum. We find $A^{phi phi} times A_{L} =1.01 pm 0.08$ for the lensing map made from combined SPT and Planck temperature data, indicating that the amount of lensing is in excellent agreement with what is expected from the observed CMB angular power spectrum when not including the information from smearing of the acoustic peaks.
We derive cosmological constraints using a galaxy cluster sample selected from the 2500~deg$^2$ SPT-SZ survey. The sample spans the redshift range $0.25< z<1.75$ and contains 343 clusters with SZ detection significance $xi>5$. The sample is supplemented with optical weak gravitational lensing measurements of 32 clusters with $0.29<z<1.13$ (from Magellan and HST) and X-ray measurements of 89 clusters with $0.25<z<1.75$ (from Chandra). We rely on minimal modeling assumptions: i) weak lensing provides an accurate means of measuring halo masses, ii) the mean SZ and X-ray observables are related to the true halo mass through power-law relations in mass and dimensionless Hubble parameter $E(z)$ with a-priori unknown parameters, iii) there is (correlated, lognormal) intrinsic scatter and measurement noise relating these observables to their mean relations. We simultaneously fit for these astrophysical modeling parameters and for cosmology. Assuming a flat $ uLambda$CDM model, in which the sum of neutrino masses is a free parameter, we measure $Omega_mathrm{m}=0.276pm0.047$, $sigma_8=0.781pm0.037$, and $sigma_8(Omega_mathrm{m}/0.3)^{0.2}=0.766pm0.025$. The redshift evolution of the X-ray $Y_mathrm{X}$-mass and $M_mathrm{gas}$-mass relations are both consistent with self-similar evolution to within $1sigma$. The mass-slope of the $Y_mathrm{X}$-mass relation shows a $2.3sigma$ deviation from self-similarity. Similarly, the mass-slope of the $M_mathrm{gas}$-mass relation is steeper than self-similarity at the $2.5sigma$ level. In a $ u w$CDM cosmology, we measure the dark energy equation of state parameter $w=-1.55pm0.41$ from the cluster data. We perform a measurement of the growth of structure since redshift $zsim1.7$ and find no evidence for tension with the prediction from General Relativity. We provide updated redshift and mass estimates for the SPT sample. (abridged)
We present an internal consistency test of South Pole Telescope (SPT) measurements of the cosmic microwave background (CMB) temperature anisotropy using three-band data from the SPT-SZ survey. These measurements are made from observations of ~2500 deg^2 of sky in three frequency bands centered at 95, 150, and 220 GHz. We combine the information from these three bands into six semi-independent estimates of the CMB power spectrum (three single-frequency power spectra and three cross-frequency spectra) over the multipole range 650 < l < 3000. We subtract an estimate of foreground power from each power spectrum and evaluate the consistency among the resulting CMB-only spectra. We determine that the six foreground-cleaned power spectra are consistent with the null hypothesis, in which the six cleaned spectra contain only CMB power and noise. A fit of the data to this model results in a chi-squared value of 236.3 for 235 degrees of freedom, and the probability to exceed this chi-squared value is 46%.
(abridged) We present cosmological constraints obtained from galaxy clusters identified by their Sunyaev-Zeldovich effect signature in the 2500 square degree South Pole Telescope Sunyaev Zeldovich survey. We consider the 377 cluster candidates identified at z>0.25 with a detection significance greater than five, corresponding to the 95% purity threshold for the survey. We compute constraints on cosmological models using the measured cluster abundance as a function of mass and redshift. We include additional constraints from multi-wavelength observations, including Chandra X-ray data for 82 clusters and a weak lensing-based prior on the normalization of the mass-observable scaling relations. Assuming a LCDM cosmology, where the species-summed neutrino mass has the minimum allowed value (mnu = 0.06 eV) from neutrino oscillation experiments, we combine the cluster data with a prior on H0 and find sigma_8 = 0.797+-0.031 and Omega_m = 0.289+-0.042, with the parameter combination sigma_8(Omega_m/0.27)^0.3 = 0.784+-0.039. These results are in good agreement with constraints from the CMB from SPT, WMAP, and Planck, as well as with constraints from other cluster datasets. Adding mnu as a free parameter, we find mnu = 0.14+-0.08 eV when combining the SPT cluster data with Planck CMB data and BAO data, consistent with the minimum allowed value. Finally, we consider a cosmology where mnu and N_eff are fixed to the LCDM values, but the dark energy equation of state parameter w is free. Using the SPT cluster data in combination with an H0 prior, we measure w = -1.28+-0.31, a constraint consistent with the LCDM cosmological model and derived from the combination of growth of structure and geometry. When combined with primarily geometrical constraints from Planck CMB, H0, BAO and SNe, adding the SPT cluster data improves the w constraint from the geometrical data alone by 14%, to w = -1.023+-0.042.