Engineering topics
Natarajan, Aravind
Publications and source records attributed to Natarajan, Aravind.
PROBING THE DARK AGES AT z ∼ 20: THE SCI-HI 21 cm ALL-SKY SPECTRUM EXPERIMENT
We present first results from the SCI-HI experiment, which we used to measure the all-sky-averaged 21 cm brightness temperature in the redshift range 14.8 < z < 22.7. The instrument consists of a single broadband sub-wavelength size antenna and a sampling system for real-time data processing and recording. Preliminary observations were completed in 2013 June at Isla Guadalupe, a Mexican biosphere reserve located in the Pacific Ocean. The data was cleaned to excise channels contaminated by radio frequency interference, and the system response was calibrated by comparing the measured brightness temperature to the Global Sky Model of the Galaxy and by independent measurement of Johnson noise from a calibration terminator. We present our results, discuss the cosmological implications, and describe plans for future work.
CONSTRAINING PRIMORDIAL MAGNETIC FIELDS THROUGH LARGE-SCALE STRUCTURE
We study primordial magnetic field effects on the matter perturbations in the universe. We assume magnetic field generation prior to the big bang nucleosynthesis (BBN), i.e., during the radiation-dominated epoch of the universe expansion, but do not limit analysis by considering a particular magnetogenesis scenario. Contrary to previous studies, we limit the total magnetic field energy density and not the smoothed amplitude of the magnetic field at large (of the order of 1 Mpc) scales. We review several cosmological signatures, such as halo abundance, thermal Sunyaev-Zel'dovich effect, and Ly{alpha} data. For a cross-check, we compare our limits with that obtained through the cosmic microwave background faraday rotation effect and BBN. The limits range between 1.5 nG and 4.5 nG for n{sub B} in (- 3; -1.5).
DAMA and the self-similar infall halo model
The annual modulation in the rate of weakly interacting massive particle (WIMP) recoils observed by the DAMA Collaboration at high significance is often analyzed in the context of an isothermal Maxwell-Boltzmann velocity distribution. While this is the simplest model, there is a need to consider other well motivated theories of halo formation. In this paper, we study a different halo model, that of self-similar infall which is characterized by the presence of a number of cold streams and caustics, not seen in simulations. It is shown that the self-similar infall model is consistent with the DAMA result both in amplitude and in phase, for WIMP masses exceeding {approx_equal}250 GeV at the 99.7% confidence level. Adding a small thermal component makes the parameter space near m{sub {chi}=}12 GeV consistent with the self-similar model. The minimum {chi}{sup 2} per degree of freedom is found to be 0.92(1.03) with(without) channeling taken into account, indicating an acceptable fit. For WIMP masses much greater than the mass of the target nucleus, the recoil rate depends only on the ratio {sigma}{sub p}/m{sub {chi}} which is found to be {approx_equal}0.06 femtobarn/TeV. However, as in the case of the isothermal halo, the allowed parameter space is inconsistent with the null result obtained by the CDMS and XENON experiments for spin-independent elastic scattering. Future experiments with directional sensitivity and mass bounds from accelerator experiments will help to distinguish between different halo models and/or constrain the contribution from cold flows.
Mass varying neutrinos, quintessence, and the accelerating expansion of the Universe
We analyze the mass varying neutrino scenario. We consider a minimal model of massless Dirac fermions coupled to a scalar field, mainly in the framework of finite-temperature quantum field theory. We demonstrate that the mass equation we find has nontrivial solutions only for special classes of potentials, and only within certain temperature intervals. We give most of our results for the Ratra-Peebles dark energy (DE) potential. The thermal (temporal) evolution of the model is analyzed. Following the time arrow, the stable, metastable, and unstable phases are predicted. The model predicts that the present Universe is below its critical temperature and accelerates. At the critical point, the Universe undergoes a first-order phase transition from the (meta)stable oscillatory regime to the unstable rolling regime of the DE field. This conclusion agrees with the original idea of quintessence as a force making the Universe roll towards its true vacuum with a zero {Lambda} term. The present mass varying neutrino scenario is free from the coincidence problem, since both the DE density and the neutrino mass are determined by the scale M of the potential. Choosing M{approx}10{sup -3} eV to match the present DE density, we can obtain the present neutrino mass in the range m{approx}10{sup -2}-1 eV and consistent estimates for other parameters of the Universe.
Dark Matter Caustics
The continuous infall of dark matter with low velocity dispersion in galactic halos leads to the formation of high density structures called caustics. Dark matter caustics are of two kinds : outer and inner. Outer caustics are thin spherical shells surrounding galaxies while inner caustics have a more complicated structure that depends on the dark matter angular momentum distribution. The presence of a dark matter caustic in the plane of the galaxy modifies the gas density in its neighborhood which may lead to observable effects. Caustics are also relevant to direct and indirect dark matter searches.