Mapping the Universe in 3D using Carbon Monoxide
Kieran Cleary
Caltech

Efforts to understand the evolution of structure in the Universe are limited by our inability to trace large numbers of faint galaxies over large cosmic volumes. Conventional techniques such as blind galaxy surveys are inevitably biased to detect extreme, bright galaxies at cosmic distances, rather than the faint galaxies that are more representative of the total population. They are also extremely time-consuming and so do not scale well to cover large volumes of the Universe. Spectral line intensity mapping is a technique with the potential to overcome these limitations and complement traditional galaxy surveys. The CO Mapping Array Project (COMAP) is applying this technique using carbon monoxide to trace the aggregate properties of galaxies over cosmic time, back to the Epoch of Reionization (EoR). A Pathfinder instrument is currently pursuing a detection of the CO power spectrum at z~3, near the peak of cosmic star-formation. A second instrument, COMAP-wide, is being constructed which, in combination with measurements of redshifted 21 cm emission from neutral hydrogen by other experiments, will place limits on the relationship between carbon monoxide and neutral hydrogen at the EoR. This talk will review the use of carbon monoxide as a tracer for intensity mapping experiments and describe the current status of COMAP, as well as what we can expect from this project in the coming years.

Date:	Mardi, le 21 avril 2026
Heure:	15:30
Lieu:	Université McGill
	Ernest Rutherford Physics, R.E. Bell Conference Room (room 103)