ScholarLens Back to search
2008•Digital Access to Scholarship at Harvard (DASH) (Harvard University)Open access

CMBPol Mission Concept Study: Probing Inflation with CMB Polarization

Daniel Baumann, Mark Jackson, Peter Adshead, Alexandre Amblard, Amjad Ashoorioon, Nicola Bartolo, Rachel Bean, M. T. Beltrán, Francesco De Bernardis, Simeon Bird, Xingang Chen, Daniel J. H. Chung, L. P. L. Colombo, Asantha Cooray, Paolo Creminelli, Scott Dodelson, Joanna Dunkley, Cora Dvorkin, Richard Easther, F. Finelli⋆, Raphael Flauger, Mark P. Hertzberg, Katherine Jones-Smith, Shamit Kachru, Kenji Kadota, Justin Khoury, William H. Kinney, Eiichiro Komatsu, Lawrence M. Krauss, J. Lesgourgues, Andrew R. Liddle, M. Liguori, Eugene A. Lim, Andrei Linde, S. Matarrese, Harsh Mathur, Liam McAllister, A. Melchiorri, Alberto Nicolis, L. Pagano, Hiranya V. Peiris, Marco Peloso, Levon Pogosian, E. Pierpaoli, Antonio Riotto, Uroš Seljak, Leonardo Senatore, Sarah Shandera, Eva Silverstein, Tristan L. Smith, Pascal M. Vaudrevange, Licia Verde, B. D. Wandelt, David Wands, Scott Watson, Mark Wyman, Amit Yadav, Wessel Valkenburg, Matías Zaldarriaga

Open full text 219 citations

Abstract

We summarize the utility of precise cosmic microwave background (CMB) polarization measurements as probes of the physics of inflation. We focus on the prospects for using CMB measurements to differentiate various inflationary mechanisms. In particular, a detection of primordial B-mode polarization would demonstrate that inflation occurred at a very high energy scale, and that the inflaton traversed a super-Planckian distance in field space. We explain how such a detection or constraint would illuminate aspects of physics at the Planck scale. Moreover, CMB measurements can constrain the scale-dependence and non-Gaussianity of the primordial fluctuations and limit the possibility of a significant isocurvature contribution. Each such limit provides crucial information on the underlying inflationary dynamics. Finally, we quantify these considerations by presenting forecasts for the sensitivities of a future satellite experiment to the inflationary parameters.

Open-access reader

About this research paper

What this paper is about

We summarize the utility of precise cosmic microwave background (CMB) polarization measurements as probes of the physics of inflation. We focus on the prospects for using CMB measurements to differentiate various inflationary mechanisms. In particular, a detection of primordial B-mode polarization would demonstrate that inflation occurred at a very high energy scale, and that the inflaton traversed a super-Planckian distance in field space. We explain how such a detection or constraint would illuminate aspects of physics at the Planck scale. Moreover, CMB measurements can constrain the scale-dependence and non-Gaussianity of the primordial fluctuations and limit the possibility of a significant isocurvature contribution. Each such limit provides crucial information on the underlying inflationary dynamics. Finally, we quantify these considerations by presenting forecasts for the sensitivities of a future satellite experiment to the inflationary parameters.

Why it matters

OpenAlex reports 219 citations for this work. Citation counts describe recorded attention and do not establish research quality.

Key contribution

A contribution statement is not available in the OpenAlex record.

Method / approach

Method details are not available in the OpenAlex metadata.

Main findings

Findings are not separately available in the OpenAlex metadata.

Limitations

Limitations are not available in the OpenAlex metadata.

Applications

Application details are not available in the OpenAlex metadata.

Available abstract

We summarize the utility of precise cosmic microwave background (CMB) polarization measurements as probes of the physics of inflation. We focus on the prospects for using CMB measurements to differentiate various inflationary mechanisms. In particular, a detection of primordial B-mode polarization would demonstrate that inflation occurred at a very high energy scale, and that the inflaton traversed a super-Planckian distance in field space. We explain how such a detection or constraint would illuminate aspects of physics at the Planck scale. Moreover, CMB measurements can constrain the scale-dependence and non-Gaussianity of the primordial fluctuations and limit the possibility of a significant isocurvature contribution. Each such limit provides crucial information on the underlying inflationary dynamics. Finally, we quantify these considerations by presenting forecasts for the sensitivities of a future satellite experiment to the inflationary parameters.

Key concepts: Cosmic microwave background, Inflaton, Physics, Planck, Inflation (cosmology), Polarization (electrochemistry), Primordial fluctuations, Cosmic background radiation

Related papers

Related paper 1Related paper 2Related paper 3
Back to paper searchBrowse research topicsOriginal source
CMBPol Mission Concept Study: Probing Inflation with CMB Polarization — Research Paper | ScholarLens