Uncertainties in the Determination of Primordial D/H

Antoinette Songaila

(Proceedings of the 13th IAP Colloquium,
"Structure and Evolution of the Intergalactic Medium from
QSO Absorption Line Systems", 339-344, 1997)

Paper
The current status of high redshift D/H measurements is discussed. I first examine whether the observations of HS1937-1009 require a low value of D/H. It is shown that the LRIS measurements of the continuum break and the high resolution Lyman series data can easily be modelled with D/H in the range 5 x 10^{-5} to 10^{-4}. I then discuss measurements on weaker Lyman limit systems. A statistical treatment of 10 partial Lyman limit systems favors 5 x 10^{-5} < D/H < 2 x 10^{-4}.





Antoinette Songaila Cowie
(acowie@uhifa.ifa.hawaii.edu)
Last Revision : September, 1997