Related papers: Revisiting VLT/UVES constraints on a varying fine-…
The cosmological variability of alpha is probed from individual observations of pairs of FeII lines. This procedure allows a better control of the systematics and avoids the influence of the spectral shifts due to ionization inhomogeneities…
In their Letter [Phys. Rev. Lett. 92, 121302 (2004)] (also [Astron. Astrophys. 417, 853 (2004)]), Srianand et al. analysed optical spectra of heavy-element species in 23 absorption systems along background quasar sight-lines, reporting…
Detecting or placing upper limits on spacetime variations of fundamental constants requires quantifying every potential source of uncertainty. We continue our previous study into the impact of continuum variations on measurements of the…
Absorption-line systems detected in high resolution quasar spectra can be used to compare the value of dimensionless fundamental constants such as the fine-structure constant, alpha, and the proton-to-electron mass ratio, mu = m_p/m_e, as…
The new result on the QSO absorption lines from VLT-UVES sample is compared with the past reports on the time-variability of the fine-structure "constant" derived from the Keck/HIRES observation, on the basis of an oscillatory behavior of…
I briefly present some current theoretical motivations for time or space variations of the fundamental constants of nature and review current key observational results. I focus on the fine-structure constant, and particularly on…
There are indications from the study of quasar absorption spectra that the fine structure constant $\alpha$ may have been measurably smaller for redshifts $z>2.$ Analyses of other data ($^{149}$Sm fission rate for the Oklo natural reactor,…
We propose a new methodology for probing the cosmological variability of alpha from pairs of FeII lines (SIDAM, single ion differential alpha measurement) observed in individual exposures from a high resolution spectrograph. By this we…
An experimental search for variation in the fundamental coupling constants is strongly motivated by modern high-energy physics theories. Comparison of quasar absorption line spectra with laboratory spectra provides a sensitive probe for…
We report a new constraint on the variation of the fine-structure constant based on the analysis of 15 Si IV doublets selected from a ESO-UVES sample. We find \Delta\alpha/\alpha = (+0.15+/-0.43) x 10^-5 over a redshift range of 1.59< z <…
We analyze the consistency of different astronomical data of the variation in the fine-structure constant obtained with KECK and VLT. We tested the consistency using the Student test and confidence intervals. We splited the data sets in to…
We assess the cosmological variability of the fine-structure constant from the analysis of an ensemble of Fe II absorption lines at the redshift z=1.15 toward the QSO HE 0515-4414 by means of the standard many-multiplet (MM) technique and…
We present a short review of the current quasar (QSO) absorption line constraints on possible variation of the fine structure constant, alpha = e^2/(hbar*c). Particular attention is paid to recent optical Keck/HIRES spectra of 49 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…
Precise radial velocity measurements (delta v/c ~ 10^{-7}) of FeII lines in damped Ly-alpha systems from very high quality VLT/UVES spectra of quasars HE0515-4414 and Q1101-264 are used to probe cosmological time dependence of the fine…
We present a detailed analysis of a very high resolution (R\approx 112,000) spectrum of the quasar HE 0515-4414 obtained using the High Accuracy Radial velocity Planet Searcher (HARPS) mounted on the ESO 3.6 m telescope at the La Silla…
Comparison of quasar absorption line spectra with laboratory spectra provides a precise probe for variability of the fine structure constant, alpha, over cosmological time-scales. We constrain variation in alpha in 21 Keck/HIRES Si IV…
The strongest transitions of Zn and CrII are the most sensitive to relative variations in the fine-structure constant ($\Delta\alpha/\alpha$) among the transitions commonly observed in quasar absorption spectra. They also lie within just…
We report unbiased AI measurements of the fine structure constant $\alpha$ in two proximate absorption regions in the spectrum of the quasar HE0515$-$4414. The data are high resolution, high signal to noise, and laser frequency comb…
Motivated by previous studies of QSO spectra that reported a variation of the fine structure constant alpha, a search for C IV and Si IV doublets was conducted in the absorption spectrum toward QSO 1101-264, obtained by VLT-UVES during the…