Using the Topology of Large Scale Structure to constrain Dark Energy

TL;DR

This paper explores using the topology of large scale structure as a standard ruler to measure dark energy properties, providing a novel method to complement existing techniques like BAO.

Contribution

It introduces a topology-based approach to constrain dark energy parameters using 3D clustering data from future large scale structure surveys.

Findings

Topology measurements can constrain dark energy parameters within 5-10%.

A single topology measurement on three scales provides significant constraints.

The method offers an alternative and cross-check to BAO-based dark energy studies.

Abstract

The use of standard rulers, such as the scale of the Baryonic Acoustic oscillations (BAO), has become one of the more powerful techniques employed in cosmology to probe the entity driving the accelerating expansion of the Universe. In this paper, the topology of large scale structure (LSS) is used as one such standard ruler to study this mysterious `dark energy'. By following the redshift evolution of the clustering of luminous red galaxies (LRGs) as measured by their 3D topology (counting structures in the cosmic web), we can chart the expansion rate and extract information about the equation of state of dark energy. Using the technique first introduced in (Park & Kim, 2009), we evaluate the constraints that can be achieved using 3D topology measurements from next-generation LSS surveys such as the Baryonic Oscillation Spectroscopic Survey (BOSS). In conjunction with the information that will be available from the Planck satellite, we find a single topology measurement on 3 different scales is capable of constraining a single dark energy parameter to within 5% and 10% when dynamics are permitted. This offers an alternative use of the data available from redshift surveys and serves as a cross-check for BAO studies.