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Register a new userCosmic microwave background constraints on the tensor-to-scalar ratio
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One of the main goals of modern cosmic microwave background (CMB) missions is to measure the tensor-to-scalar ratio $r$ accurately to constrain inflation models. Due to ignorance about the reionization history $X_{e}(z)$, this analysis is usually done by assuming an instantaneous reionization $X_{e}(z)$ which, however, can bias the best-fit value of $r$. Moreover, due to the strong mixing of B-mode and E-mode polarizations in cut-sky measurements, multiplying the sky coverage fraction $f_{sky}$ by the full-sky likelihood would not give satisfactory results. In this work, we forecast constraints on $r$ for the Planck mission taking into account the general reionization scenario and cut-sky effects. Our results show that by applying an N-point interpolation analysis to the reionization history, the bias induced by the assumption of instantaneous reionization is removed and the value of $r$ is constrained within $5%$ error level, if the true value of $r$ is greater than about 0.1 .
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Tensor modes in the cosmic microwave background are one of the most robust signatures of inflation. We derive theoretical bounds on the tensor fraction, as a generalization of the well-known Lyth bound. Under reasonable assumptions, the new bounds are at least two orders of magnitude stronger than the original one. We comment on a previously derived generalization, the so-called Efstathiou-Mack relationship. We also derive a new absolute upper bound on tensors using de Sitter entropy bounds.
We present constraints on the tensor-to-scalar ratio r using Planck data. We use the latest release of Planck maps (PR4), processed with the NPIPE code, which produces calibrated frequency maps in temperature and polarization for all Planck channels from 30 GHz to 857 GHz using the same pipeline. We computed constraints on r using the BB angular power spectrum, and we also discuss constraints coming from the TT spectrum. Given Plancks noise level, the TT spectrum gives constraints on r that are cosmic-variance limited (with $sigma$(r)=0.093), but we show that the marginalized posterior peaks towards negative values of r at about the 1.2$sigma$ level. We derived Planck constraints using the BB power spectrum at both large angular scales (the reionization bump) and intermediate angular scales (the recombination bump) from $ell$=2 to 150, and find a stronger constraint than that from TT, with $sigma$(r)=0.069. The Planck BB spectrum shows no systematic bias, and is compatible with zero, given both the statistical noise and the systematic uncertainties. The likelihood analysis using B modes yields the constraint r<0.158 at 95% confidence using more than 50% of the sky. This upper limit tightens to r<0.069 when Planck EE, BB, and EB power spectra are combined consistently, and it tightens further to r<0.056 when the Planck TT power spectrum is included in the combination. Finally, combining Planck with BICEP2/Keck 2015 data yields an upper limit of r<0.044.
We forecast the ability of cosmic microwave background (CMB) temperature and polarization datasets to constrain theories of eternal inflation using cosmic bubble collisions. Using the Fisher matrix formalism, we determine both the overall detectability of bubble collisions and the constraints achievable on the fundamental parameters describing the underlying theory. The CMB signatures considered are based on state-of-the-art numerical relativistic simulations of the bubble collision spacetime, evolved using the full temperature and polarization transfer functions. Comparing a theoretical cosmic-variance-limited experiment to the WMAP and Planck satellites, we find that there is no improvement to be gained from future temperature data, that adding polarization improves detectability by approximately 30%, and that cosmic-variance-limited polarization data offer only marginal improvements over Planck. The fundamental parameter constraints achievable depend on the precise values of the tensor-to-scalar ratio and energy density in (negative) spatial curvature. For a tensor-to-scalar ratio of $0.1$ and spatial curvature at the level of $10^{-4}$, using cosmic-variance-limited data it is possible to measure the width of the potential barrier separating the inflating false vacuum from the true vacuum down to $M_{rm Pl}/500$, and the initial proper distance between colliding bubbles to a factor $pi/2$ of the false vacuum horizon size (at three sigma). We conclude that very near-future data will have the final word on bubble collisions in the CMB.
Secret contact interactions among eV sterile neutrinos, mediated by a massive gauge boson $X$ (with $M_X ll M_W$), and characterized by a gauge coupling $g_X$, have been proposed as a mean to reconcile cosmological observations and short-baseline laboratory anomalies. We constrain this scenario using the latest Planck data on Cosmic Microwave Background anisotropies, and measurements of baryon acoustic oscillations (BAO). We consistently include the effect of secret interactions on cosmological perturbations, namely the increased density and pressure fluctuations in the neutrino fluid, and still find a severe tension between the secret interaction framework and cosmology. In fact, taking into account neutrino scattering via secret interactions, we derive our own mass bound on sterile neutrinos and find (at 95% CL) $m_s < 0.82$ eV or $m_s < 0.29$ eV from Planck alone or in combination with BAO, respectively. These limits confirm the discrepancy with the laboratory anomalies. Moreover, we constrain, in the limit of contact interaction, the effective strength $G_X$ to be $ < 2.8 (2.0) times 10^{10},G_F$ from Planck (Planck+BAO). This result, together with the mass bound, strongly disfavours the region with $M_X sim 0.1$ MeV and relatively large coupling $g_Xsim 10^{-1}$, previously indicated as a possible solution to the small scale dark matter problem.
STPpol, POLARBEAR and BICEP2 have recently measured the cosmic microwave background (CMB) B-mode polarization in various sky regions of several tens of square degrees and obtained BB power spectra in the multipole range 20-3000, detecting the components due to gravitational lensing and to inflationary gravitational waves. We analyze jointly the results of these three experiments and propose modifications of their analysis of the spectra to include in the model, in addition to the gravitational lensing and the inflationary gravitational waves components, also the effects induced by the cosmic polarization rotation (CPR), if it exists within current upper limits. Although in principle our analysis would lead also to new constraints on CPR, in practice these can only be given on its fluctuations <{delta}{alpha}^2>, since constraints on its mean angle are inhibited by the de-rotation which is applied by current CMB polarization experiments, in order to cope with the insufficient calibration of the polarization angle. The combined data fits from all three experiments (with 29% CPR-SPTpol correlation, depending on theoretical model) gives constraint <{delta}{alpha}^2>^1/2 < 27.3 mrad (1.56{deg}) with r = 0.194 pm 0.033. These results show that the present data are consistent with no CPR detection and the constraint on CPR fluctuation is about 1.5{deg}. This method of constraining the cosmic polarization rotation is new, is complementary to previous tests, which use the radio and optical/UV polarization of radio galaxies and the CMB E-mode polarization, and adds a new constraint for the sky areas observed by SPTpol, POLARBEAR and BICEP2.
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