Related papers: The Case for Dark Radiation
We investigate our knowledge of early universe cosmology by exploring how much additional energy density can be placed in different components beyond those in the $\Lambda$CDM model. To do this we use a method to separate early- and…
Various particle physics models suggest that, besides the (nearly) cold dark matter that accounts for current observations, additional but sub-dominant dark relics might exist. These could be warm, hot, or even contribute as dark radiation.…
From a combination of probes including the cosmic microwave background (WMAP7+SPT), Hubble constant (HST), baryon acoustic oscillations (SDSS+2dFGRS), and supernova distances (Union2), we have explored the extent to which the constraints on…
The density budget of the Universe is reviewed, and then specific particle candidates for non-bayonic dark matter are introduced, with emphasis on the relevance of cosmic-ray physics. The sizes of the neutrino masses indicated by recent…
We investigate the possibility of using cosmological observations to probe and constrain an imperfect dark energy fluid. We consider a general parameterization of the dark energy component accounting for an equation of state, speed of sound…
Recent work on increasing the effective number of neutrino species (Neff) in the early universe has focussed on introducing extra relativistic species (`dark radiation'). We draw attention to another possibility: a new particle of mass less…
We compute the thermalization of a hidden sector consisting of minicharged fermions (MCPs) and massless hidden photons in the early Universe. The precise measurement of the anisotropies of the cosmic microwave background (CMB) by Planck and…
We discuss the impact of a hidden sector consisting of Minicharged Particles (MCPs) and massless hidden photons on the expansion history of our Universe. We present parameter scans for the amount of extra relativistic particles (Neff) and…
We investigate the observational constraints on the cosmic neutrino background (CNB) given by the extended $\Lambda$CDM scenario ($\Lambda$CDM $+ N_{\rm eff} + \sum m_{\nu} + c^2_{\rm eff} + c^2_{\rm vis} + \xi_{\nu}$) using the latest…
Dark matter in the cosmological concordance model is parameterised by a single number, describing the covariantly conserved energy density of a non-relativistic fluid. Here we test this assumption in a model-independent and conservative way…
The existence of a cosmic neutrino background can be probed indirectly by CMB experiments, not only by measuring the background density of radiation in the universe, but also by searching for the typical signatures of the fluctuations of…
As experimentalists step up their pursuit of cold dark matter particles and neutrino masses, cosmological constraints are tightening. We compute the joint constraints on 11 cosmological parameters from cosmic microwave background and large…
The nature of dark matter is one of the most thrilling riddles for both cosmology and particle physics nowadays. While in the typical models the dark sector is composed only by weakly interacting massive particles, an arguably more natural…
A dual component made of non-relativistic particles and a scalar field, exchanging energy, naturally falls onto an attractor solution, making them a (sub)dominant part of the cosmic energy during the radiation dominated era, provided that…
Recent observations on Type-Ia supernovae and low density ($\Omega_{m} = 0.3$) measurement of matter including dark matter suggest that the present-day universe consists mainly of repulsive-gravity type `exotic matter' with…
We investigate the presence of extra relativistic degrees of freedom in the early Universe, contributing to the effective number of neutrinos $N_\text{eff}$, as $\Delta N_\text{eff}\equiv N_\text{eff}-3.044\geq 0$, in light of the recent…
We present new constraints on the rest-frame sound speed, c_{eff}^2, and the viscosity parameter, c_{vis}^2, of the Cosmic Neutrino Background from the recent measurements of the Cosmic Microwave Background anisotropies provided by the…
Recent cosmological observations, such as the measurement of the primordial 4He abundance, CMB, and large scale structure, give preference to the existence of extra radiation component, Delta N_nu > 0. The extra radiation may be accounted…
Cosmological observations are becoming increasingly sensitive to the effects of light particles in the form of dark radiation (DR) at the time of recombination. The conventional observable of effective neutrino number, $N_{\rm eff}$, is…
We have derived new bounds on the relativistic energy density in the Universe from cosmic microwave background (CMB), large scale structure (LSS), and type Ia supernova (SNI-a) observations. In terms of the effective number of neutrino…