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Wim Ubachs
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The status of searches for possible variation in the constants of nature from astronomical observation of molecules is reviewed, focusing on the dimensionless constant representing the proton-electron mass ratio $mu=m_p/m_e$. The optical detection of H$_2$ and CO molecules with large ground-based telescopes (as the ESO-VLT and the Keck telescopes), as well as the detection of H$_2$ with the Cosmic Origins Spectrograph aboard the Hubble Space Telescope is discussed in the context of varying constants, and in connection to different theoretical scenarios. Radio astronomy provides an alternative search strategy bearing the advantage that molecules as NH$_3$ (ammonia) and CH$_3$OH (methanol) can be used, which are much more sensitive to a varying $mu$ than diatomic molecules. Current constraints are $|Deltamu/mu| < 5 times 10^{-6}$ for redshift $z=2.0-4.2$, corresponding to look-back times of 10-12.5 Gyrs, and $|Deltamu/mu| < 1.5 times 10^{-7}$ for $z=0.88$, corresponding to half the age of the Universe (both at 3$sigma$ statistical significance). Existing bottlenecks and prospects for future improvement with novel instrumentation are discussed.
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Absorption lines of H$_2$ and HD molecules observed at high redshift in the line of sight towards quasars are a test ground to search for variation of the proton-to-electron mass ratio $mu$. For this purpose, results from astronomical observations are compared with a compilation of molecular data of the highest accuracy, obtained in laboratory studies as well as in first-principles calculations. Aims: A comprehensive line list is compiled for H$_2$ and HD absorption lines in the Lyman ($B^1Sigma_u^+$ - $X^1Sigma_g^+$) and Werner ($C^1Pi_u$ - $X^1Sigma_g^+$) band systems up to the Lyman cutoff at 912 Angstroms. Molecular parameters listed for each line $i$ are the transition wavelength $lambda_i$, the line oscillator strength $f_i$, the radiative damping parameter of the excited state $Gamma_i$, and the sensitivity coefficient $K_i$ for a variation of the proton-to-electron mass ratio. Methods: The transition wavelengths $lambda_i$ for the H$_2$ and HD molecules are determined by a variety of advanced high-precision spectroscopic experiments involving narrowband vacuum ultraviolet lasers, Fourier-transform spectrometers, and synchrotron radiation sources. Results for the line oscillator strengths $f_i$, damping parameters $Gamma_i$, and sensitivity coefficients $K_i$ are obtained in theoretical quantum chemical calculations. Results: A new list of molecular data is compiled for future analyses of cold clouds of hydrogen absorbers, specifically for studies of $mu$-variation from quasar data. The list is applied in a refit of quasar absorption spectra of B0642$-$5038 and J1237$+$0647 yielding constraints on a variation of the proton-to-electron mass ratio $Deltamu/mu$ consistent with previous analyses.
We review the variety of new singularities in homogeneous and isotropic FRW cosmology which differ from standard Big-Bang and Big-Crunch singularities and suggest how the nature of these singularities can be influenced by the varying fundamental constants.
[Abridged] Observations of molecular gas at all redshifts are critical for measuring the cosmic evolution in molecular gas density and understanding the star-formation history of the Universe. The 12CO molecule (J=1-0 transition = 115.27 GHz) is the best proxy for extragalactic H2, which is the gas reservoir from which star formation occurs, and has been detected out to z~6. Typically, redshifted high-J lines are observed at mm-wavelengths, the most commonly targeted systems exhibiting high SFRs (e.g. submm galaxies), and far-IR-bright QSOs. While the most luminous objects are the most readily observed, detections of more typical galaxies with modest SFRs are essential for completing the picture. ALMA will be revolutionary in terms of increasing the detection rate and pushing the sensitivity limit down to include such galaxies, however the limited FoV when observing at such high frequencies makes it difficult to use ALMA for studies of the large-scale structure traced out by molecular gas in galaxies. This article introduces a strategy for a systematic search for molecular gas during the EoR (z~7 and above), capitalizing on the fact that the J=1-0 transition of 12CO enters the upper bands of cm-wave instruments at high-z. The FoV advantage gained by observing at such frequencies, coupled with modern broadband correlators allows significant cosmological volumes to be probed on reasonable timescales. In this article we present an overview of our future observing programme which has been awarded 6,500 hours as one of the Large Survey Projects for MeerKAT, the forthcoming South African SKA pathfinder instrument. Its large FoV and correlator bandwidth, and high-sensitivity provide unprecedented survey speed for such work. An existing astrophysical simulation is coupled with instrumental considerations to demonstrate the feasibility of such observations and predict detection rates.
We discuss minisuperspace models within the framework of varying physical constants theories including $Lambda$-term. In particular, we consider the varying speed of light (VSL) theory and varying gravitational constant theory (VG) using the specific ansatze for the variability of constants: $c(a) = c_0 a^n$ and $G(a)=G_0 a^q$. We find that most of the varying $c$ and $G$ minisuperspace potentials are of the tunneling type which allows to use WKB approximation of quantum mechanics. Using this method we show that the probability of tunneling of the universe from nothing ($a=0)$ to a Friedmann geometry with the scale factor $a_t$ is large for growing $c$ models and is strongly suppressed for diminishing $c$ models. As for $G$ varying, the probability of tunneling is large for $G$ diminishing, while it is small for $G$ increasing. In general, both varying $c$ and $G$ change the probability of tunneling in comparison to the standard matter content (cosmological term, dust, radiation) universe models.
Varying fundamental constants (VFC) [e.g., the fine-structure constant, $alpha_{rm EM}$] can arise in numerous extended cosmologies. Through their effect on the decoupling of baryons and photons during last scattering and reionisation, these models can be directly constrained using measurements of the cosmic microwave background (CMB) temperature and polarization anisotropies. Previous investigations focused mainly on time-independent changes to the values of fundamental constants. Here we generalize to time-dependent variations. Instead of directly studying various VFC parameterizations, we perform a model-independent principal component analysis (PCA), directly using an eigenmode decomposition of the varying constant during recombination. After developing the formalism, we use Planck 2018 data to obtain new VFC limits, showing that three independent VFC modes can be constrained at present. No indications for significant departures from the standard model are found with Planck data. Cosmic variance limited modes are also compared and simple forecasts for The Simons Observatory are carried out, showing that in the future improvements of the current constraints by a factor of $simeq 3$ can be anticipated. Our modes focus solely on VFC at redshifts $zgeq 300$. This implies that they do not capture some of the degrees of freedom relating to the reionisation era. This aspect provides important new insights into the possible origin of the Hubble tension, hinting that indeed a combined modification of recombination and reionisation physics could be at work. An extended PCA, covering both recombination and reionisation simultaneously, could shed more light on this question, as we emphasize here.
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