Université de GenèveDépartement de Physique ThéoriqueCAP Genève

Status and future of 21-cm cosmology during the first billion years

Date: 
15. March 2024 - 11:45 to 13:00
Speaker: 
Andrei Mesinger (Scuola Normale Superiore, Pisa)
The 21-cm hyperfine line of neutral hydrogen is set to revolutionize studies of the first billion years, spanning the cosmic dawn of the first stars and eventual reionization of our Universe. I will discuss the potential of this probe in learning about the unknown astrophysics of the first galaxies as well as physical cosmology. Current upper limits on the cosmic 21-cm power spectrum already provide new insights into the heating of the intergalactic medium, and the X-ray sources in the first galaxies. I will discuss the upcoming steps, including the main challenges, that will eventually lead to the Nobel prize-worthy 3D map of half of our observable Universe with the Square Kilometer Array (SKA) telescope.

Address

Département de Physique Théorique
Université de Genève
24, quai Ernest Ansermet
1211 Genève 4
Switzerland
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