Abstract: "A simple cosmological model with only six
parameters (matter density, Omega(m)h(2), baryon density, Omega(b)h(2),
Hubble constant, H-0, amplitude of fluctuations, sigma(8), optical depth,
tau, and a slope for the scalar perturbation spectrum, n(s)) fits not only
the 3 year WMAP temperature and polarization data, but also
small-scale CMB data, light element abundances, large-scale structure
observations, and the supernova luminosity/distance relationship. Using
WMAP data only, the best-fit values for cosmological parameters
for the power-law flat Lambda cold dark matter (Lambda CDM) model are
(Omega(m)h(2), Omega(b)h(2), h, n(s), tau, sigma(s)) =
(0.1277(-0.0079)(+0.0080), 0.02229 +/- 0.00073, 0.732(-0.032)(+0.031),
0.958 +/- 0.016,0.089 +/- 0.030, 0.761(-0.048)(+0.049)). The 3 year data
dramatically shrink the allowed volume in this six-dimensional parameter
space. Assuming that the primordial fluctuations are adiabatic with a
power-law spectrum, the WMAP data alone require dark matter and
favor a spectral index that is significantly less than the
Harrison-Zel'dovich-Peebles scale-invariant spectrum ( n(s) = 1, r = 0).
Adding additional data sets improves the constraints on these components
and the spectral slope. For power-law models, WMAP data alone puts
an improved upper limit on the tensor-to-scalar ratio, r(0.002) < 0.65 (
95% CL) and the combination of WMAP and the lensing-normalized
SDSS galaxy survey implies r(0.002) < 0.30 ( 95% CL). Models that
suppress large-scale power through a running spectral index or a
large-scale cutoff in the power spectrum are a better fit to the
WMAP and small-scale CMB data than the power-law Lambda CDM model;
however, the improvement in the fit to the WMAP data is only
Delta(2)(chi) = 3 for 1 extra degree of freedom. Models with a
running-spectral index are consistent with a higher amplitude of gravity
waves. In a flat universe, the combination of WMAP and the
Supernova Legacy Survey (SNLS) data yields a significant constraint on the
equation of state of the dark energy, w = -0.967(-0.072)(+0.073). If we
assume w = -1, then the deviations from the critical density, Omega(K), are
small: the combination of WMAP and the SNLS data implies Omega(k)
= -0.011 +/- 0.012. The combination of WMAP 3 year data plus the
HST Key Project constraint on H-0 implies Omega(k) = -0.014 +/- 0.017 and
Omega(Lambda) = 0.716 +/- 0.055. Even if we do not include the prior that
the universe is flat, by combining WMAP, large-scale structure,
and supernova data, we can still put a strong constraint on the dark energy
equation of state, w = -1.08 +/- 0.12. For a flat universe, the combination
of WMAP and other astronomical data yield a constraint on the sum
of the neutrino masses, Sigma m(nu) < 0.66 eV (95%CL). Consistent with
the predictions of simple inflationary theories, we detect no significant
deviations from Gaussianity in the CMB maps using Minkowski functionals,
the bispectrum, trispectrum, and a new statistic designed to detect
large-scale anisotropies in the fluctuations."
This 2007 report from Astrophysical Journal Supplement Series was
cited 107 times in current journal articles
indexed by Thomson Scientific during September-October 2007. No other
physics paper published in the last two years, aside from reviews,
collected a higher number of citations during that two-month period. In
fact, with its citation count rising at a rapid clip, this report ranks
among the most-cited papers published in 2007--a distinction that is all
the more impressive given the paper's publication date in June,
comparatively late in the year. Prior to the most recent bimonthly count,
citations to the paper have accrued as follows:
July-August 2007: 6 citations
Total citations to date:
113
SOURCE:
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Sci-Bytes : 2008 : 01.20.2008 - Hot Paper in Physics