How isotropic is the Universe?
Daniela Saadeh,1, ∗ Stephen M. Feeney, 2 Andrew Pontzen,1 Hiranya V. Peiris,1
and Jason D. McEwen 3
1Department of Physics and Astronomy, University College London, London WC1E 6BT, U.K.
2Astrophysics Group, Imperial College London, Blackett Laboratory, Prince Consort Road, London, SW7 2AZ, U.K.
3Mullard Space Science Laboratory (MSSL), University College London, Surrey RH5 6NT, U.K.
(Dated: September 8, 2016)
Source/Fonte: Hitoshi - Berkeley
Abstract
A fundamental assumption in the standard model of cosmology is that the Universe is isotropic on large scales. Breaking this assumption leads to a set of solutions to Einstein’s field equations, known as Bianchi cosmologies, only a subset of which have ever been tested against data. For the first time, we consider all degrees of freedom in these solutions to conduct a general test of isotropy using cosmic microwave background temperature and polarization data from Planck. For the vector mode (associated with vorticity), we obtain a limit on the anisotropic expansion of (σV /H)0 < 4.7 × 10−11 (95% CI), which is an order of magnitude tighter than previous Planck results that used CMB temperature only. We also place upper limits on other modes of anisotropic expansion, with the weakest limit arising from the regular tensor mode, (σT,reg/H)0 <1.0 × 10−6 (95% CI). Including all degrees of freedom simultaneously for the first time, anisotropic expansion of the Universe is strongly disfavoured, with odds of 121,000:1 against.
FREE PDF GRATIS: arXiv
