Recovering Cosmic Structure with a Simple Physical Constraint

Radio observation of the large-scale structure (LSS) of our Universe faces major challenges from foreground contamination, which is many orders of magnitude stronger than the cosmic signal. While other foreground removal techniques struggle with complex systematics, methods like foreground avoidance...

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Main Authors: Tian-Cheng Luan, Xin Wang, Jiacheng Ding, Qian Li, Xiao-Dong Li, Weishan Zhu
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: IOP Publishing 2025-01-01
Series:The Astrophysical Journal
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Online Access:https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/adc1c6
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author Tian-Cheng Luan
Xin Wang
Jiacheng Ding
Qian Li
Xiao-Dong Li
Weishan Zhu
author_facet Tian-Cheng Luan
Xin Wang
Jiacheng Ding
Qian Li
Xiao-Dong Li
Weishan Zhu
author_sort Tian-Cheng Luan
collection DOAJ
description Radio observation of the large-scale structure (LSS) of our Universe faces major challenges from foreground contamination, which is many orders of magnitude stronger than the cosmic signal. While other foreground removal techniques struggle with complex systematics, methods like foreground avoidance emerge as effective alternatives. However, this approach inevitably results in the loss of Fourier modes and a reduction in cosmological constraints. We present a novel method that, by enforcing the non-negativity of the observed field in real space, allows us to recover some of the lost information, particularly phase angles. We demonstrate that the effectiveness of this straightforward yet powerful technique arises from the mode mixing from the nonlinear evolution of LSS. Since the non-negativity is ensured by mass conservation—one of the key principles of the cosmic dynamics— we can restore the lost modes without explicitly expressing the exact form of the mode mixing. Unlike previous methods, our approach utilizes information from highly nonlinear scales and has the potential to revolutionize the analysis of radio observational data in cosmology. Crucially, we demonstrate that in long-baseline interferometric observations, such as those from the Square Kilometre Array, it is still possible to recover the baryonic acoustic oscillation signature despite not directly covering the relevant scales. This opens up potential future survey designs for cosmological detection.
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publishDate 2025-01-01
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series The Astrophysical Journal
spelling doaj-art-ffd7a5be65eb4e8499b0f04d86a414d62025-08-20T02:17:37ZengIOP PublishingThe Astrophysical Journal1538-43572025-01-01983216610.3847/1538-4357/adc1c6Recovering Cosmic Structure with a Simple Physical ConstraintTian-Cheng Luan0https://orcid.org/0009-0001-6592-6467Xin Wang1https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2472-6485Jiacheng Ding2Qian Li3Xiao-Dong Li4Weishan Zhu5https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1189-2855School of Physics and Astronomy, Sun Yat-Sen University , No. 2 Daxue Road, Zhuhai, 519082, People’s Republic of China ; wangxin35@mail.sysu.edu.cn, lixiaod25@mail.sysu.edu.cnSchool of Physics and Astronomy, Sun Yat-Sen University , No. 2 Daxue Road, Zhuhai, 519082, People’s Republic of China ; wangxin35@mail.sysu.edu.cn, lixiaod25@mail.sysu.edu.cn; CSST Science Center for the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau Greater Bay Area , SYSU, People’s Republic of ChinaShanghai Astronomical Observatory , Chinese Academy of Sciences, No. 80 Nandan Road, Shanghai, 200030, People’s Republic of ChinaSchool of Physics and Astronomy, Sun Yat-Sen University , No. 2 Daxue Road, Zhuhai, 519082, People’s Republic of China ; wangxin35@mail.sysu.edu.cn, lixiaod25@mail.sysu.edu.cn; CSST Science Center for the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau Greater Bay Area , SYSU, People’s Republic of ChinaSchool of Physics and Astronomy, Sun Yat-Sen University , No. 2 Daxue Road, Zhuhai, 519082, People’s Republic of China ; wangxin35@mail.sysu.edu.cn, lixiaod25@mail.sysu.edu.cn; CSST Science Center for the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau Greater Bay Area , SYSU, People’s Republic of ChinaSchool of Physics and Astronomy, Sun Yat-Sen University , No. 2 Daxue Road, Zhuhai, 519082, People’s Republic of China ; wangxin35@mail.sysu.edu.cn, lixiaod25@mail.sysu.edu.cn; CSST Science Center for the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau Greater Bay Area , SYSU, People’s Republic of ChinaRadio observation of the large-scale structure (LSS) of our Universe faces major challenges from foreground contamination, which is many orders of magnitude stronger than the cosmic signal. While other foreground removal techniques struggle with complex systematics, methods like foreground avoidance emerge as effective alternatives. However, this approach inevitably results in the loss of Fourier modes and a reduction in cosmological constraints. We present a novel method that, by enforcing the non-negativity of the observed field in real space, allows us to recover some of the lost information, particularly phase angles. We demonstrate that the effectiveness of this straightforward yet powerful technique arises from the mode mixing from the nonlinear evolution of LSS. Since the non-negativity is ensured by mass conservation—one of the key principles of the cosmic dynamics— we can restore the lost modes without explicitly expressing the exact form of the mode mixing. Unlike previous methods, our approach utilizes information from highly nonlinear scales and has the potential to revolutionize the analysis of radio observational data in cosmology. Crucially, we demonstrate that in long-baseline interferometric observations, such as those from the Square Kilometre Array, it is still possible to recover the baryonic acoustic oscillation signature despite not directly covering the relevant scales. This opens up potential future survey designs for cosmological detection.https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/adc1c6CosmologyLarge-scale structure of the universeObservational cosmology
spellingShingle Tian-Cheng Luan
Xin Wang
Jiacheng Ding
Qian Li
Xiao-Dong Li
Weishan Zhu
Recovering Cosmic Structure with a Simple Physical Constraint
The Astrophysical Journal
Cosmology
Large-scale structure of the universe
Observational cosmology
title Recovering Cosmic Structure with a Simple Physical Constraint
title_full Recovering Cosmic Structure with a Simple Physical Constraint
title_fullStr Recovering Cosmic Structure with a Simple Physical Constraint
title_full_unstemmed Recovering Cosmic Structure with a Simple Physical Constraint
title_short Recovering Cosmic Structure with a Simple Physical Constraint
title_sort recovering cosmic structure with a simple physical constraint
topic Cosmology
Large-scale structure of the universe
Observational cosmology
url https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/adc1c6
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AT jiachengding recoveringcosmicstructurewithasimplephysicalconstraint
AT qianli recoveringcosmicstructurewithasimplephysicalconstraint
AT xiaodongli recoveringcosmicstructurewithasimplephysicalconstraint
AT weishanzhu recoveringcosmicstructurewithasimplephysicalconstraint