Related papers: Subaru Telescope limits on cosmological variations…
The strong intervening absorption system at redshift 1.15 towards the very bright quasar HE 0515$-$4414 is the most studied absorber for measuring possible cosmological variations in the fine-structure constant, $\alpha$. We observed HE…
Observations of the redshift z=7.085 quasar J1120+0641 have been used to search for variations of the fine structure constant, alpha, over the redshift range 5.5 to 7.1. Observations at z=7.1 probe the physics of the universe when it was…
Quasar spectra reveal a rich array of important astrophysical information about galaxies which intersect the quasar line of sight. They also enable tests of the variability of fundamental constants over cosmological time and…
Absorption spectroscopy toward high-redshift quasars provides strong constraints on the putative variation of fundamental constants of physics on cosmological time scales. The submillimeter ground-state transitions of methylidyne (CH) and…
New observations of the quasar HE0515$-$4414 have been made using the HARPS spectrograph on the ESO 3.6m telescope, aided by the Laser Frequency Comb (LFC). We present three important advances for $\alpha$ measurements in quasar absorption…
We present a new `supercalibration' technique for measuring systematic distortions in the wavelength scales of high resolution spectrographs. By comparing spectra of `solar twin' stars or asteroids with a reference laboratory solar…
Absorption line systems detected in quasar spectra can be used to compare the value of the fine-structure constant, {\alpha}, measured today on Earth with its value in distant galaxies. In recent years, some evidence has emerged of small…
Searches for spacetime variations of fundamental constants have entered an era of unprecedented precision. New, high quality quasar spectra require increasingly refined analytic methods. In this article, a continuation in a series to…
We review recent activity searching for variations in the fundamental constants of nature in quasar absorption spectra and in the laboratory. While research in this direction has been ongoing for many decades, the topic has recently been…
Cosmological variations in the fine structure constant, alpha, can be probed through precise velocity measurements of metallic absorption lines from intervening gas clouds seen in spectra of distant quasars. Data from the Keck/HIRES…
Spatial and temporal variations in the electron-to-proton mass ratio, mu, and in the fine-structure constant, alpha, are predicted in non-Standard models aimed to explain the nature of dark energy. Among them the so-called chameleon-like…
Detection of high-redshift absorption in the optical spectra of quasars have provided a powerful tool to measure spatial and temporal variations of physical ``constants'' in the Universe. It is demonstrated that high sensitivity to the…
The fine structure constant, $\alpha$, sets the strength of the electromagnetic force. The Standard Model of particle physics provides no explanation for its value, which could potentially vary. The wavelengths of stellar absorption lines…
We critically review the current null results on a varying fine-structure constant, alpha, derived from VLT/UVES quasar absorption spectra, focusing primarily on the many-multiplet analysis of 23 absorbers from which Chand et al. (2004)…
The high resolution spectrograph ESPRESSO on the VLT allows measurements of fundamental constants at unprecedented precision and hence enables tests for spacetime variations predicted by some theories. In a series of recent papers, we…
From the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) Data Release 12, which covers the full Baryonic Oscillation Spectroscopic Survey (BOSS) footprint, we investigate the possible variation of the fine-structure constant over cosmological time-scales.…
The optical spectra of objects classified as QSOs in the SDSS DR6 are analyzed with the aim of determining the value of the fine structure constant in the past and then check for possible changes in the constant over cosmological…
We present a spectroscopic follow-up program targeting closely-separated dual quasar candidates selected from imaging of SDSS quasars with the Subaru Hyper Suprime-Cam Subaru Strategic Program (HSC-SSP). Using two-dimensional image…
The rich absorption spectra of Sun-like stars are enticing probes for variations in the fine-structure constant, $\alpha$, which gauges the strength of electromagnetism. While individual line wavelengths are sensitive to $\alpha$, they are…
We measure cosmic weak lensing shear power spectra with the Subaru Hyper Suprime-Cam (HSC) survey first-year shear catalog covering 137deg$^2$ of the sky. Thanks to the high effective galaxy number density of $\sim$17 arcmin$^{-2}$ even…