A search for ultra-light axions using precision cosmological data

Abstract

Ultra-light axions (ULAs) with masses in the range 10^{-33} eV <m <10^{-20} eV are motivated by string theory and might contribute to either the dark-matter or dark-energy density of the Universe. ULAs could suppress the growth of structure on small scales, or lead to an enhanced integrated Sachs-Wolfe effect on large-scale cosmic microwave-background (CMB) anisotropies. In this work, cosmological observables over the full ULA mass range are computed, and then used to search for evidence of ULAs using CMB data from the Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe (WMAP), Planck satellite, Atacama Cosmology Telescope, and South Pole Telescope, as well as galaxy clustering data from the WiggleZ galaxy-redshift survey. In the mass range 10^{-32} eV < m <10^{-25.5} eV, the axion relic-density Ω_{a} (relative to the total dark-matter relic density Ω_{d}) must obey the constraints Ω_{a}/Ω_{d} < 0.05 and Ω_{a}h^{2} < 0.006 at 95%-confidence. For m> 10^{-24} eV, ULAs are indistinguishable from standard cold dark matter on the length scales probed, and are thus allowed by these data. For m < 10^{-32} eV, ULAs are allowed to compose a significant fraction of the dark energy.

31 pages, 16 figures, 1 table, updated to have same figure line-types/language as version published in Phys. Rev. D, grammatical corrections made, references added, results unchanged

References in corpus (26)

• Monodromy in the CMB: Gravity Waves and String Inflation
• Improved Dark Energy Constraints from ~100 New CfA Supernova Type Ia Light Curves
• Supernova Constraints and Systematic Uncertainties from the First 3 Years of the Supernova Legacy Survey
• Baryon Acoustic Oscillations in the Ly-α forest of BOSS quasars
• Resonant detection of axion mediated forces with Nuclear Magnetic Resonance
• An M Theory Solution to the Strong CP Problem and Constraints on the Axiverse
• Ultra-Light Scalar Fields and the Growth of Structure in the Universe
• The Quest for an Intermediate-Scale Accidental Axion and Further ALPs
• Dark energy from the string axiverse
• The clustering of galaxies in the SDSS-III Baryon Oscillation Spectroscopic Survey: Signs of neutrino mass in current cosmological datasets
• Axion as a Cold Dark Matter candidate
• Axions as Quintessence in String Theory
• Constraining the Axion-Photon Coupling with Massive Stars
• A Telescope Search for Decaying Relic Axions
• Pseudoscalar perturbations and polarization of the cosmic microwave background
• Axion cold dark matter in view of BICEP2 results
• Precision Epoch of Reionization studies with next-generation CMB experiments
• Halo bias in mixed dark matter cosmologies
• Aligned Natural Inflation in String Theory
• Where in the String Landscape is Quintessence
• ${\varphi }^2$ as Dark Matter
• Scalar Field Dark Matter: non-spherical collapse and late time behavior
• Heavy Tails in Calabi-Yau Moduli Spaces
• Axionic dark energy and a composite QCD axion
• Numerical simulation code for self-gravitating Bose-Einstein condensates
• New Atomic probes for Dark Matter detection: Axions, Axion-like particles and Topological Defects

Cited by in corpus (16)

• Ultralight scalars as cosmological dark matter
• Axion dark matter, solitons, and the cusp-core problem
• Search for ultralight scalar dark matter with atomic spectroscopy
• Lyman-alpha Constraints on Ultralight Scalar Dark Matter: Implications for the Early and Late Universe
• Search for axion-like dark matter through nuclear spin precession in electric and magnetic fields
• Neutrino Oscillations as a Probe of Light Scalar Dark Matter
• Substructure of fuzzy dark matter haloes
• The impact of ultra-light axion self-interactions on the large scale structure of the Universe
• Oscillating Spin-2 Dark Matter
• Non-linear hydrodynamics of axion dark matter: relative velocity effects and "quantum forces"
• The Spectrum of the Axion Dark Sector
• Core-halo mass relation of ultralight axion dark matter from merger history
• How Late can the Dark Matter form in our universe?
• New astrophysical bounds on ultralight axionlike particles
• Structural properties of artificial halos in non-standard dark matter simulations
• Fundamental fields around compact objects: Massive spin-2 fields, Superradiant instabilities and Stars with dark matter cores