Galactic Dust Polarization in Turbulent Multiphase ISM: On the Origin of the $EE/BB$ Asymmetry

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Hauptverfasser: Hu, Yue, Truong, Bao, Hoang, Thiem, Tram, Le Ngoc
Format: Preprint
Veröffentlicht: 2026
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author Hu, Yue
Truong, Bao
Hoang, Thiem
Tram, Le Ngoc
author_facet Hu, Yue
Truong, Bao
Hoang, Thiem
Tram, Le Ngoc
contents Polarized thermal emission from Galactic dust is the dominant foreground for CMB polarization measurements at high frequencies, with its statistical properties set by the interplay between turbulence and magnetic fields in the multiphase interstellar medium (ISM). Variations in turbulence regime and density-magnetic-field alignment across the warm (WNM), unstable (UNM), and cold (CNM) neutral media should imprint distinct signatures on the power spectra and $EE/BB$ power ratio, yet the relative phase contributions remain poorly constrained. Using high-resolution 3D magnetohydrodynamic simulations of a turbulent multiphase ISM coupled with synthetic dust polarization maps, we quantify phase-dependent turbulence, anisotropy, and alignment properties. We find that the trans-Alfvénic and transonic WNM and UNM are strongly anisotropic, exhibiting tight alignment of density and velocity structures with the local magnetic field. In contrast, the super-Alfvénic and supersonic CNM displays reduced anisotropy and weak alignment. These dynamical differences are reflected in the statistical scaling of fluctuations: the square root of the second-order velocity structure function exhibits a slope near $1/3$ in the WNM, near $1/2$ in the CNM, and intermediate in the UNM. Our synthetic observations reproduce the polarization power spectra measured by Planck. We find that polarization from UNM dust yields spectral indices most consistent with Planck, whereas WNM and CNM dust produce steeper and shallower spectra, respectively. The WNM yields $EE/BB>2$, the UNM gives $EE/BB\sim2$, and the CNM yields $EE/BB\approx1$. These results indicate that UNM dust could be the dominant contributor to the polarized foreground. We present predictions at 150 GHz to improve foreground separation.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2601_17255
institution arXiv
publishDate 2026
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Galactic Dust Polarization in Turbulent Multiphase ISM: On the Origin of the $EE/BB$ Asymmetry
Hu, Yue
Truong, Bao
Hoang, Thiem
Tram, Le Ngoc
Astrophysics of Galaxies
Polarized thermal emission from Galactic dust is the dominant foreground for CMB polarization measurements at high frequencies, with its statistical properties set by the interplay between turbulence and magnetic fields in the multiphase interstellar medium (ISM). Variations in turbulence regime and density-magnetic-field alignment across the warm (WNM), unstable (UNM), and cold (CNM) neutral media should imprint distinct signatures on the power spectra and $EE/BB$ power ratio, yet the relative phase contributions remain poorly constrained. Using high-resolution 3D magnetohydrodynamic simulations of a turbulent multiphase ISM coupled with synthetic dust polarization maps, we quantify phase-dependent turbulence, anisotropy, and alignment properties. We find that the trans-Alfvénic and transonic WNM and UNM are strongly anisotropic, exhibiting tight alignment of density and velocity structures with the local magnetic field. In contrast, the super-Alfvénic and supersonic CNM displays reduced anisotropy and weak alignment. These dynamical differences are reflected in the statistical scaling of fluctuations: the square root of the second-order velocity structure function exhibits a slope near $1/3$ in the WNM, near $1/2$ in the CNM, and intermediate in the UNM. Our synthetic observations reproduce the polarization power spectra measured by Planck. We find that polarization from UNM dust yields spectral indices most consistent with Planck, whereas WNM and CNM dust produce steeper and shallower spectra, respectively. The WNM yields $EE/BB>2$, the UNM gives $EE/BB\sim2$, and the CNM yields $EE/BB\approx1$. These results indicate that UNM dust could be the dominant contributor to the polarized foreground. We present predictions at 150 GHz to improve foreground separation.
title Galactic Dust Polarization in Turbulent Multiphase ISM: On the Origin of the $EE/BB$ Asymmetry
topic Astrophysics of Galaxies
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2601.17255