Peering into the dark (ages) with low-frequency space interferometers
Using the 21-cm signal of neutral hydrogen from the infant universe to probe fundamental (Astro)physics
Léon V.E. Koopmans (Rijksuniversiteit Groningen)
Rennan Barkana (Tel Aviv University)
Mark Bentum (Eindhoven University of Technology, Netherlands Institute for Radio Astronomy (ASTRON))
Gianni Bernardi (SKAO-SA, INAF Istituto di Astrofisica Spaziale e Fisica Cosmica, Bologna)
Albert Jan Boonstra (Netherlands Institute for Radio Astronomy (ASTRON))
Judd Bowman (Arizona State University)
Jack Burns (University of Colorado - Boulder)
Xuelei Chen (NAOC)
L. Gurvits (Astrodynamics & Space Missions)
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Abstract
The Dark Ages and Cosmic Dawn are largely unexplored windows on the infant Universe (z ~ 200–10). Observations of the redshifted 21-cm line of neutral hydrogen can provide valuable new insight into fundamental physics and astrophysics during these eras that no other probe can provide, and drives the design of many future ground-based instruments such as the Square Kilometre Array (SKA) and the Hydrogen Epoch of Reionization Array (HERA). We review progress in the field of high-redshift 21-cm Cosmology, in particular focussing on what questions can be addressed by probing the Dark Ages at z > 30. We conclude that only a space- or lunar-based radio telescope, shielded from the Earth’s radio-frequency interference (RFI) signals and its ionosphere, enable the 21-cm signal from the Dark Ages to be detected. We suggest a generic mission design concept, CoDEX, that will enable this in the coming decades.
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