The course aims to explore in detail some aspects of Modern Cosmology which are just as many topics of high interest both from the point of view of the physical phenomena involved and from the point of view of the methodologies used. Particular attention is paid to the comparison between observations and theory, that is to the relation between the Cosmology and the Astrophysical Astrophysics.
teacher profile teaching materials
- Density fluctuation in a cosmological scenario: generation and growth. Gravitational Instability. Newtonian limit and the Jeans Theory. Linear theory.
- Cosmic Microwave Background temperature fluctuation. Acoustic peaks. The Sachs-Wolfe effect. Secondary effects. -
- Cosmic backgrounds in different energy bands: Radio, X-ray and gamma-ray
- Secondary anisotropies. The Gunn-Peterson effect, cosmic reionization, Ly-alpha forest and Sunayev-Zel'dovich effect.
- The intergalactic medium at low redshift and the missing baryons problem.
- Large scale structures. Statistical analysis of the galaxy distribution in space. Correlation functions and power spectra.
- Luminous vs. dark matter. Galaxy bias.
- Nonlinear growth of density fluctuations. The Zel'dovich approximation. The spherical collapse model. The halo model. Press-Schechter theory and its extension.
- Peculiar velocities, distance indicators and their calibrations.
- Gravitational lensing: Theory and observations. Micro-lensing. Strong lensing. Weak lensing.
Longair M. Galaxy Formation [A&A Library ]
Coles P., Lucchin F. Cosmology [Wiley 2000]
Various reviews provided during the course.
Programme
This course discusses in detail the key issues in Modern Cosmology, including outstanding problems. The goal is to provide an overview of the subject and to illustrate the main techniques, theoretical and observational alike, commonly used in this field. The main topics are:- Density fluctuation in a cosmological scenario: generation and growth. Gravitational Instability. Newtonian limit and the Jeans Theory. Linear theory.
- Cosmic Microwave Background temperature fluctuation. Acoustic peaks. The Sachs-Wolfe effect. Secondary effects. -
- Cosmic backgrounds in different energy bands: Radio, X-ray and gamma-ray
- Secondary anisotropies. The Gunn-Peterson effect, cosmic reionization, Ly-alpha forest and Sunayev-Zel'dovich effect.
- The intergalactic medium at low redshift and the missing baryons problem.
- Large scale structures. Statistical analysis of the galaxy distribution in space. Correlation functions and power spectra.
- Luminous vs. dark matter. Galaxy bias.
- Nonlinear growth of density fluctuations. The Zel'dovich approximation. The spherical collapse model. The halo model. Press-Schechter theory and its extension.
- Peculiar velocities, distance indicators and their calibrations.
- Gravitational lensing: Theory and observations. Micro-lensing. Strong lensing. Weak lensing.
Core Documentation
Peacock J. Physical Cosmology. Cambridge Univ.PressLongair M. Galaxy Formation [A&A Library ]
Coles P., Lucchin F. Cosmology [Wiley 2000]
Various reviews provided during the course.
Type of delivery of the course
The course consists of a number of face-to-face lectures, with some exercise and, possibly, a few hours dedicated to specific topics to be treated more in details.Type of evaluation
The final exam is in oral form. The student can choose between two options. 1) Questions are asked on all arguments presented during the course. 2) The student focuses on two specific topics, chosen among those in the program, based on additional material provided by the lecturer. During the exams questions will be asked on this additional material and related topics.