R. D. Joseph Astronomy 627
Cosmology Spring
Term 2002
Textbook: M. S. Longair, Galaxy Formation, Springer, 1998.
J. E. Gunn, M. S. Longair, M. J.
Rees, Observational Cosmology, Saas-Fee
Lectures, 1978.
E. W. Kolb & M. S. Turner, The
Early Universe, Addison-Wesley, 1990.
J. V. Narlikar, Introduction to
Cosmology, Cambridge Univ Press, 2002.
J. D. North, The Measure of the
Universe, Dover paperback reprint 1990 of
the original 1965 edition from Oxford Univ Press.
J. A. Peacock, Cosmological
Physics, Cambridge Univ Press, 1999.
P. J. E. Peebles, Physical
Cosmology, Princeton Univ Press, 1971.
P. J. E. Peebles, The
Large-Scale Structure of the Universe,
Princeton Univ Press, 1980.
P. J. E. Peebles, Principles of
Physical Cosmology, Princeton Univ Press,
1993.
M. Rowan-Robinson, Cosmology, 3rd edn., Oxford Univ Press, 1996.
There are several good articles in
the current issue of Annual Reviews of Astronomy and Astrophysics, vol. 39, 2001, as
well as in past issues. Some which
are particularly relevant include:
¨ S. E. Carroll, W. H. Press, & E. L. Turner, 1992.
“The Cosmological Constant,” Ann. Rev. Astron. Astrophys., 30, 499.
¨ J. V. Narlikar & T. Padmanabhan, “Standard
Cosmology and Alternatives: A Critical Appraisal,” Ann. Rev. Astron.
Astrophys., 39, 211.
¨ J. V. Narlikar & T. Padmanabhan, “Inflation for
Astronomers,” Ann. Rev. Astron. Astrophys., 29, 325.
¨ M. White, D. Scott, & J. Silk, “Anisotropies in
the Cosmic Microwave Background,” Ann. Rev. Astron. Astrophys., 32, 319.
Course grading scheme.
There will be one homework a week,
and these will count for about 60% of the total mark. There will be one mid-term and one final exam, and each will
count 20% of the total mark.
My major aim in the course is that
students understand the material we cover. How much material is covered and to what depth is secondary
to a secure level of comprehension. This is a course in astrophysical cosmology in the sense that we are interested in the
physics that takes place in the large-scale Universe, and we are not
restricting merely to development of the classical world models. This is one of the most exciting
subjects in natural science, a study in which we investigate some of the most
profound questions one can ask in physical science. It is a subject in which the physics of the very small,
particle physics at >1015 GeV, is intimately connected with the
physics of the largest scales in the Universe. However, we will not develop GR or quantum field theory but
we will attempt to give a physical sense of where ideas from these subjects
impinge on cosmology. I hope to
have organized a course which provides a fundamental understanding of
cosmological issues for working astronomers.
Introduction and historical
review
1 The observational context
The Cosmic Microwave Background
Radiation (CMBR)
Hubble expansion
Galaxies
Dark matter
Clustering properties of galaxies
and large-scale structure
Peculiar velocities and deviations
from isotropic Hubble flow
Light element abundances
2 The theory of gravitation
Difficulties with Newtonian
gravitation
Mach’s Principle
Isotropic curved spaces
Review of Special relativity,
4-vectors, covariant formulation of electrodynamics
The fundamental assumptions of
General Relativity (GR)
Outline of the program of GR
The Einstein field equations
3 The “standard”
cosmological models
Cosmological
“Principles”
The Robertson-Walker metric
Measurements of distances,
luminosities, angular sizes, etc. in the cosmological context
The Friedman models of classical
cosmology
Observational tests of the
Friedman models
The Anthropic Principle and
Dirac's large numbers
4 Thermal history of the
Universe.
Radiation-dominated expansion
The epoch of
“recombination”
Fluctuations in the surface of
last scattering
5 Big-Bang Nucleosynthesis
Nuclear statistical equilibrium in
the early Universe
Synthesis of the light elements
Measurements of primordial light
element abundances
Baryon and lepton asymmetry in the
early Universe
6 Inflationary cosmology
Puzzles of expansion, flatness,
horizon
Equation of state for inflation
Inflation scenario
Fluctuation spectrum emerging from
the inflationary epoch
Critique of inflationary models
7 Galaxy formation
Jeans’ instability
Growth of density perturbations in
Friedman models
Dissipation processes
Adiabatic and isothermal
fluctuations in baryonic matter
Growth of fluctuations and damping
processes in non-baryonic matter
Hot dark matter models
Cold dark matter models
Comparison of measured clustering
spectra with model predictions
Peculiar velocity fields
8 The Post-Recombination
Universe
8a Fluctuations in the Cosmic
Microwave Background Radiation
Gravitational, adiabatic, and
Doppler perturbations
Multipole expansion of temperature
fluctuations
Interpretation of angular
structure in the CMBR
Re-heating of the intergalactic
gas
Sunyaev-Zeldovich Effect
Observations of CMBR anisotropies
8b Evolution of galaxies
Non-linear collapse of density
perturbations
Press-Schechter description of
hierarchical clustering
Source counts for various classes
of galaxies
Background radiation due to
various classes of galaxies
8c Evolution of star formation
rates and element abundances
Lyman-alpha clouds
Counts of star-forming galaxies
out to large redshifts
Cosmic chemical evolution