An Imprint of Super-Structures on the Microwave Background due to the Integrated Sachs-Wolfe Effect

TL;DR

This paper detects the late-time Integrated Sachs-Wolfe effect by measuring temperature deviations in the microwave background associated with super-structures, providing evidence for dark energy in a flat universe.

Contribution

It presents the first direct observational evidence linking super-structures to the ISW effect using SDSS data, supporting the existence of dark energy.

Findings

Mean temperature deviation of 9.6 microK with 4 sigma significance

Visual imprint of super-structures on the microwave background

Detection consistent with predictions of dark energy effects

Abstract

We measure hot and cold spots on the microwave background associated with supercluster and supervoid structures identified in the Sloan Digital Sky Survey Luminous Red Galaxy catalog. The structures give a compelling visual imprint, with a mean temperature deviation of 9.6 +/- 2.2 microK, i.e. above 4 sigma. We interpret this as a detection of the late-time Integrated Sachs-Wolfe (ISW) effect, in which cosmic acceleration from dark energy causes gravitational potentials to decay, heating or cooling photons passing through density crests or troughs. In a flat universe, the linear ISW effect is a direct signal of dark energy.