H. Spieler

A measurement of the damping tail of the cosmic microwave background power spectrum with the South Pole Telescope

We present a measurement of the angular power spectrum of the cosmic microwave background (CMB) using data from the South Pole Telescope (SPT). The data consist of 790 square degrees of sky observed at 150 GHz during 2008 and 2009. Here we present the power spectrum over the multipole range 650 < ‘ < 3000, where it is dominated by primary CMB anisotropy. We combine this power spectrum with the power spectra from the seven-year Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe (WMAP) data release to constrain cosmological models. We nd that the SPT and WMAP data are consistent with each other and, when combined, are well t by a spatially at, CDM cosmological model. The SPT+WMAP constraint on the spectral index of scalar uctuations is ns = 0:9663 0:0112. We detect, at 5 signicance, the eect of gravitational lensing on the CMB power spectrum, and nd its amplitude to be consistent with the CDM cosmological model. We explore a number of extensions beyond the CDM model. Each extension is tested independently, although there are degeneracies between some of the extension parameters. We constrain the tensorto-scalar ratio to be r < 0:21 (95% CL) and constrain the running of the scalar spectral index to be dns=d lnk = 0:024 0:013. We strongly detect the eects of primordial helium and neutrinos on the CMB; a model without helium is rejected at 7.7 , while a model without neutrinos is rejected at 7.5 . The primordial helium abundance is measured to be Yp = 0:296 0:030, and the eective number of relativistic species is measured to be Ne = 3:85 0:62. The constraints on these models are strengthened when the CMB data are combined with measurements of the Hubble constant and the baryon acoustic oscillation feature. Notable improvements include ns = 0:9668 0:0093, r < 0:17 (95% CL), and Ne = 3:86 0:42. The SPT+WMAP data show a mild preference for low power in the CMB damping tail, and while this preference may be accommodated by models that have a negative spectral running, a high primordial helium abundance, or a high eective number of relativistic species, such models are disfavored by the abundance of low-redshift galaxy clusters. Subject headings: cosmology { cosmology:cosmic microwave background { cosmology: observations { large-scale structure of universe

Constraints on cosmology from the cosmic microwave background power spectrum of the 2500 deg2 SPT-SZ survey

We explore extensions to the ΛCDM cosmology using measurements of the cosmic microwave background (CMB) from the recent SPT-SZ survey, along with data from WMAP7 and measurements of H_0 and baryon acoustic oscillation (BAO). We check for consistency within ΛCDM between these data sets, and find some tension. The CMB alone gives weak support to physics beyond ΛCDM, due to a slight trend relative to ΛCDM of decreasing power toward smaller angular scales. While it may be due to statistical fluctuation, this trend could also be explained by several extensions. We consider running of the primordial spectral index (dn_s /d ln k), as well as two extensions that modify the damping tail power (the primordial helium abundance Y_p and the effective number of neutrino species N_(eff)) and one that modifies the large-scale power due to the integrated Sachs-Wolfe effect (the sum of neutrino masses ∑m_ν). These extensions have similar observational consequences and are partially degenerate when considered simultaneously. Of the six one-parameter extensions considered, we find CMB to have the largest preference for dn_s/d ln k with –0.046 0 from CMB+BAO+H_0 + SPT_(CL). The median value is (0.32 ± 0.11) eV, a factor of six above the lower bound set by neutrino oscillation observations. All data sets except H_0 show some preference for massive neutrinos; data combinations including H_0 favor nonzero masses only if BAO data are also included. We also constrain the two-parameter extensions N_(eff) + ∑m_ν and N_(eff) + Y_p to explore constraints on additional light species and big bang nucleosynthesis, respectively.

A flexible 128 channel silicon strip detector instrumentation integrated circuit with sparse data readout

A full-custom CMOS integrated circuit for silicon strip detector systems has been designed, fabricated, and tested. The circuit contains 128 parallel data-acquisition channels and considerable peripheral circuitry. Each channel consists of a low-noise, low-power, charge-sensitive amplifier, a multistage autobalanced comparator, an analog multiplexer, nearest-neighbor logic, priority-search logic, and a share of a position-encoding read-only memory. The analog system can substract both detector pedestal and leakage current on a channel-by-channel basis. A key feature of this design is the inclusion of on-chip sparse read-out circuitry, which allows efficient management of low-occupancy events. Designed for use at the Collider Detector Facility (CDF) at Fermilab, the circuit is suitable for large-scale silicon detector systems requiring a large, dense array of fast, low-power electronics. >

A massive, cooling-flow-induced starburst in the core of a luminous cluster of galaxies

In the cores of some clusters of galaxies the hot intracluster plasma is dense enough that it should cool radiatively in the cluster’s lifetime, leading to continuous ‘cooling flows’ of gas sinking towards the cluster centre, yet no such cooling flow has been observed. The low observed star-formation rates and cool gas masses for these ‘cool-core’ clusters suggest that much of the cooling must be offset by feedback to prevent the formation of a runaway cooling flow. Here we report X-ray, optical and infrared observations of the galaxy cluster SPT-CLJ2344-4243 (ref. 11) at redshift z = 0.596. These observations reveal an exceptionally luminous (8.2 × 1045 erg s−1) galaxy cluster that hosts an extremely strong cooling flow (around 3,820 solar masses a year). Further, the central galaxy in this cluster appears to be experiencing a massive starburst (formation of around 740 solar masses a year), which suggests that the feedback source responsible for preventing runaway cooling in nearby cool-core clusters may not yet be fully established in SPT-CLJ2344-4243. This large star-formation rate implies that a significant fraction of the stars in the central galaxy of this cluster may form through accretion of the intracluster medium, rather than (as is currently thought) assembling entirely via mergers.

SPT-CL J0546-5345: A Massive z > 1 Galaxy Cluster Selected Via the Sunyaev-Zel'dovich Effect with the South Pole Telescope

United States. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (Jet Propulsion Laboratory (U.S.))

Frequency multiplexed superconducting quantum interference device readout of large bolometer arrays for cosmic microwave background measurements

A technological milestone for experiments employing transition edge sensor bolometers operating at sub-Kelvin temperature is the deployment of detector arrays with 100s-1000s of bolometers. One key technology for such arrays is readout multiplexing: the ability to read out many sensors simultaneously on the same set of wires. This paper describes a frequency-domain multiplexed readout system which has been developed for and deployed on the APEX-SZ and South Pole Telescope millimeter wavelength receivers. In this system, the detector array is divided into modules of seven detectors, and each bolometer within the module is biased with a unique ∼MHz sinusoidal carrier such that the individual bolometer signals are well separated in frequency space. The currents from all bolometers in a module are summed together and pre-amplified with superconducting quantum interference devices operating at 4 K. Room temperature electronics demodulate the carriers to recover the bolometer signals, which are digitized separately and stored to disk. This readout system contributes little noise relative to the detectors themselves, is remarkably insensitive to unwanted microphonic excitations, and provides a technology pathway to multiplexing larger numbers of sensors.

Measurement of the Cosmic Microwave Background Polarization Lensing Power Spectrum with the POLARBEAR experiment

Gravitational lensing due to the large-scale distribution of matter in the cosmos distorts the primordial cosmic microwave background (CMB) and thereby induces new, small-scale B-mode polarization. This signal carries detailed information about the distribution of all the gravitating matter between the observer and CMB last scattering surface. We report the first direct evidence for polarization lensing based on purely CMB information, from using the four-point correlations of even- and odd-parity E- and B-mode polarization mapped over ∼30 square degrees of the sky measured by the POLARBEAR experiment. These data were analyzed using a blind analysis framework and checked for spurious systematic contamination using null tests and simulations. Evidence for the signal of polarization lensing and lensing B modes is found at 4.2σ (stat+sys) significance. The amplitude of matter fluctuations is measured with a precision of 27%, and is found to be consistent with the Lambda cold dark matter cosmological model. This measurement demonstrates a new technique, capable of mapping all gravitating matter in the Universe, sensitive to the sum of neutrino masses, and essential for cleaning the lensing B-mode signal in searches for primordial gravitational waves.

High-resolution operation of frequency-multiplexed transition-edge photon sensors

We present the multiplexed readout of two gamma-ray microcalorimeters made from transition-edge sensors. We use a frequency-domain multiplexing scheme in which each sensor is biased at an identifying frequency. We show that the energy resolution of the sensors is unaffected by multiplexing, and that crosstalk between the sensors is negligible. Our results indicate the feasibility of multiplexing 30 sensors or more to one readout line.

Frequency-domain multiplexed readout of transition-edge sensor arrays with a superconducting quantum interference device

We demonstrate an eight-channel frequency-domain readout multiplexer for superconducting transition-edge sensors (TESs). Each sensor is biased with a sinusoidal voltage at a unique frequency. The sensor currents are summed and measured with a single superconducting quantum interference device (SQUID) array. The 100-element SQUID array is operated with shunt feedback electronics that have a slew rate of 1.2×107Φ0∕s at 1MHz. The multiplexer readout noise is 6.5pA∕Hz, which is well below the expected sensor noise of 15pA∕Hz. We measure an upper limit on adjacent channel crosstalk of 0.004, which meets our design requirements. The demodulated noise spectra of multiplexed TESs are white at frequencies down to 200mHz.

The EBEX experiment

EBEX is a balloon-borne polarimeter designed to measure the intensity and polarization of the cosmic microwave background radiation. The measurements would probe the inflationary epoch that took place shortly after the big bang and would significantly improve constraints on the values of several cosmological parameters. EBEX is unique in its broad frequency coverage and in its ability to provide critical information about the level of polarized Galactic foregrounds which will be necessary for all future CMB polarization experiments. EBEX consists of a 1.5 m Dragone-type telescope that provides a resolution of less than 8 arcminutes over four focal planes each of 4 degree diffraction limited field of view at frequencies up to 450 GHz. The experiment is designed to accommodate 330 transition edge bolometric detectors per focal plane, for a total of up to 1320 detectors. EBEX will operate with frequency bands centered at 150, 250, 350, and 450 GHz. Polarimetry is achieved with a rotating achromatic half-wave plate. EBEX is currently in the design and construction phase, and first light is scheduled for 2008.