Monday, April 22, 2019 at 4:00 PM

JILA Auditorium

Jackie Hewitt, MIT

"Probing the Cosmic Dawn and the Epoch of Reionization with the 21cm Hydrogen Line"

Abstract:

Measurements of the cosmic microwave background at redshift 1100 give us information about the initial density fluctuations that seeded structure formation. Observations of galaxies at redshift 7 give us information about the outcome of this structure formation. Between those redshifts lies a modern frontier of cosmology -- the cosmic dawn -- the formation of the first stars and the reionization of the intergalactic medium. Several recently completed low frequency radio experiments have provided us with an early glimpse into the cosmic dawn through measurements the redshifted neutral hydrogen 21cm radio line. A next generation instrument, the Hydrogen Epoch of Reionization Array (HERA) is under construction. HERA will be significantly more capable, addressing ambitious scientific goals and exploring new technologies for the future.

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