Constraining cosmological parameters using the splashback radius of galaxy clusters

Fuente: arXiv
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Main Authors: Haggar, Roan, Amoura, Yuba, Mpetha, Charlie T., Taylor, James E., Walker, Kris, Power, Chris
Format: Preprint
Published: 2024
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author Haggar, Roan
Amoura, Yuba
Mpetha, Charlie T.
Taylor, James E.
Walker, Kris
Power, Chris
author_facet Haggar, Roan
Amoura, Yuba
Mpetha, Charlie T.
Taylor, James E.
Walker, Kris
Power, Chris
contents Cosmological parameters such as $Ω_{\rm{M}}$ and $σ_{8}$ can be measured indirectly using various methods, including galaxy cluster abundance and cosmic shear. These measurements constrain the composite parameter $S_{8}$, leading to degeneracy between $Ω_{\rm{M}}$ and $σ_{8}$. However, some structural properties of galaxy clusters also correlate with cosmological parameters, due to their dependence on a cluster's accretion history. In this work, we focus on the splashback radius, an observable cluster feature that represents a boundary between a cluster and the surrounding Universe. Using a suite of cosmological simulations with a range of values for $Ω_{\rm{M}}$ and $σ_{8}$, we show that the position of the splashback radius around cluster-mass halos is greater in cosmologies with smaller values of $Ω_{\rm{M}}$ or larger values of $σ_{8}$. This variation breaks the degeneracy between $Ω_{\rm{M}}$ and $σ_{8}$ that comes from measurements of the $S_{8}$ parameter. We also show that this variation is, in principle, measurable in observations. As the splashback radius can be determined from the same weak lensing analysis already used to estimate $S_{8}$, this new approach can tighten low-redshift constraints on cosmological parameters, either using existing data, or using upcoming data such as that from Euclid and LSST.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2406_17849
institution arXiv
publishDate 2024
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Constraining cosmological parameters using the splashback radius of galaxy clusters
Haggar, Roan
Amoura, Yuba
Mpetha, Charlie T.
Taylor, James E.
Walker, Kris
Power, Chris
Cosmology and Nongalactic Astrophysics
Astrophysics of Galaxies
Cosmological parameters such as $Ω_{\rm{M}}$ and $σ_{8}$ can be measured indirectly using various methods, including galaxy cluster abundance and cosmic shear. These measurements constrain the composite parameter $S_{8}$, leading to degeneracy between $Ω_{\rm{M}}$ and $σ_{8}$. However, some structural properties of galaxy clusters also correlate with cosmological parameters, due to their dependence on a cluster's accretion history. In this work, we focus on the splashback radius, an observable cluster feature that represents a boundary between a cluster and the surrounding Universe. Using a suite of cosmological simulations with a range of values for $Ω_{\rm{M}}$ and $σ_{8}$, we show that the position of the splashback radius around cluster-mass halos is greater in cosmologies with smaller values of $Ω_{\rm{M}}$ or larger values of $σ_{8}$. This variation breaks the degeneracy between $Ω_{\rm{M}}$ and $σ_{8}$ that comes from measurements of the $S_{8}$ parameter. We also show that this variation is, in principle, measurable in observations. As the splashback radius can be determined from the same weak lensing analysis already used to estimate $S_{8}$, this new approach can tighten low-redshift constraints on cosmological parameters, either using existing data, or using upcoming data such as that from Euclid and LSST.
title Constraining cosmological parameters using the splashback radius of galaxy clusters
topic Cosmology and Nongalactic Astrophysics
Astrophysics of Galaxies
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2406.17849