Three-Dimensional Stacking as a Line Intensity Mapping Statistic

Fuente: arXiv
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Main Authors: Dunne, D. A., Cleary, K. A., Breysse, P. C., Chung, D. T., Ihle, H. T., Lunde, J. G. S., Padmanabhan, H., Stutzer, N. -O., Bond, J. R., Gundersen, J. O., Kim, J., Readhead, A. C. S.
Format: Preprint
Published: 2025
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author Dunne, D. A.
Cleary, K. A.
Breysse, P. C.
Chung, D. T.
Ihle, H. T.
Lunde, J. G. S.
Padmanabhan, H.
Stutzer, N. -O.
Bond, J. R.
Gundersen, J. O.
Kim, J.
Readhead, A. C. S.
author_facet Dunne, D. A.
Cleary, K. A.
Breysse, P. C.
Chung, D. T.
Ihle, H. T.
Lunde, J. G. S.
Padmanabhan, H.
Stutzer, N. -O.
Bond, J. R.
Gundersen, J. O.
Kim, J.
Readhead, A. C. S.
contents Line-intensity mapping (LIM) is a growing technique that measures the integrated spectral-line emission from unresolved galaxies over a three-dimensional region of the Universe. Although LIM experiments ultimately aim to provide powerful cosmological constraints via auto-correlation, many LIM experiments are also designed to take advantage of overlapping galaxy surveys, enabling joint analyses of the two datasets. We introduce a flexible simulation pipeline that can generate mock galaxy surveys and mock LIM data simultaneously for the same population of simulated galaxies. Using this pipeline, we explore a simple joint analysis technique: three-dimensional co-addition (stacking) of LIM data on the positions of galaxies from a traditional galaxy catalogue. We test how the output of this technique reacts to changes in experimental design of both the LIM experiment and the galaxy survey, its sensitivity to various astrophysical parameters, and its susceptibility to common systematic errors. We find that an ideal catalogue for a stacking analysis targets as many high-mass dark matter halos as possible. We also find that the signal in a LIM stacking analysis originates almost entirely from the large-scale clustering of halos around the catalogue objects, rather than the catalogue objects themselves. While stacking is a sensitive and conceptually simple way to achieve a LIM detection, thus providing a valuable way to validate a LIM auto-correlation detection, it will likely require a full cross-correlation to achieve further characterization of the galaxy tracers involved, as the cosmological and astrophysical parameters we explore here have degenerate effects on the stack.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2503_21743
institution arXiv
publishDate 2025
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Three-Dimensional Stacking as a Line Intensity Mapping Statistic
Dunne, D. A.
Cleary, K. A.
Breysse, P. C.
Chung, D. T.
Ihle, H. T.
Lunde, J. G. S.
Padmanabhan, H.
Stutzer, N. -O.
Bond, J. R.
Gundersen, J. O.
Kim, J.
Readhead, A. C. S.
Cosmology and Nongalactic Astrophysics
Astrophysics of Galaxies
Line-intensity mapping (LIM) is a growing technique that measures the integrated spectral-line emission from unresolved galaxies over a three-dimensional region of the Universe. Although LIM experiments ultimately aim to provide powerful cosmological constraints via auto-correlation, many LIM experiments are also designed to take advantage of overlapping galaxy surveys, enabling joint analyses of the two datasets. We introduce a flexible simulation pipeline that can generate mock galaxy surveys and mock LIM data simultaneously for the same population of simulated galaxies. Using this pipeline, we explore a simple joint analysis technique: three-dimensional co-addition (stacking) of LIM data on the positions of galaxies from a traditional galaxy catalogue. We test how the output of this technique reacts to changes in experimental design of both the LIM experiment and the galaxy survey, its sensitivity to various astrophysical parameters, and its susceptibility to common systematic errors. We find that an ideal catalogue for a stacking analysis targets as many high-mass dark matter halos as possible. We also find that the signal in a LIM stacking analysis originates almost entirely from the large-scale clustering of halos around the catalogue objects, rather than the catalogue objects themselves. While stacking is a sensitive and conceptually simple way to achieve a LIM detection, thus providing a valuable way to validate a LIM auto-correlation detection, it will likely require a full cross-correlation to achieve further characterization of the galaxy tracers involved, as the cosmological and astrophysical parameters we explore here have degenerate effects on the stack.
title Three-Dimensional Stacking as a Line Intensity Mapping Statistic
topic Cosmology and Nongalactic Astrophysics
Astrophysics of Galaxies
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2503.21743