Introduction to Cosmology

The Fourth Edition of Introduction to Cosmology provides a concise, authoritative study of cosmology at an introductory level. Starting from elementary principles and the early history of cosmology, the text carefully guides the student on to curved spacetimes, special and general relativity, gravitational lensing, the thermal history of the Universe, and cosmological models, including extended gravity models, black holes and Hawking s recent conjectures on the not–so–black holes.

Introduction to Cosmology, Fourth Edition includes:

New theoretical approaches and in–depth material on observational astrophysics and expanded sections on astrophysical phenomena

Illustrations throughout and comprehensive references with problems at the end of each chapter and a rich index at the end of the book

Latest observational results from WMAP9, ACT, and Planck, and all cosmological parameters have been
brought up to date.

This text is invaluable for undergraduate students in physics and astrophysics taking a first course in cosmology.

Extensively revised, this latest edition extends the chapter on cosmic inflation to the recent schism on eternal inflation and multiverses. Dark matter is discussed on galaxy and cluster scales, and dark matter candidates are presented, some requiring a five–dimensional universe and several representing various types of exotica. In the context of cosmic structures the cold dark matter paradigm is described. Dark energy models include the cosmological constant, quintessence and other single field models, f(R) models and models requiring extra dimensions.

Preface to First Edition xi

Preface to Second Edition xiii

Preface to Third Edition xv

Preface to Fourth Edition xvii

1 From Newton to Hubble 1

1.1 Historical Cosmology 2

1.2 Inertial Frames and the Cosmological Principle 6

1.3 Olbers Paradox 8

1.4 Hubble s Law 11

1.5 The Age of the Universe 14

1.6 Matter in the Universe 16

1.7 Expansion in a Newtonian World 19

2 Special Relativity 25

2.1 Lorentz Transformations 25

2.2 Metrics of Curved Space–time 30

2.3 Relativistic Distance Measures 37

2.4 Tests of Special Relativity 45

3 General Relativity 49

3.1 The Principle of Equivalence 50

3.2 The Principle of Covariance 54

3.3 The Einstein Equation 58

3.4 Weak Field Limit 61

4 Tests of General Relativity 65

4.1 The Classical Tests 65

4.2 Binary Pulsars 67

4.3 Gravitational Lensing 69

4.4 Gravitational Waves 74

5 Cosmological Models 81

5.1 Friedmann Lemaitre Cosmologies 81

5.2 de Sitter Cosmology 93

5.3 The Schwarzschild Model 95

5.4 Black Holes 96

5.5 Extended Gravity Models 106

6 Thermal History of the Universe 111

6.1 Planck Time 112

6.2 The Primordial Hot Plasma 112

6.3 Electroweak Interactions 121

6.4 Photon and Lepton Decoupling 128

6.5 Big Bang Nucleosynthesis 134

6.6 Baryosynthesis and Antimatter Generation 142

7 Cosmic Inflation 151

7.1 Paradoxes of the Expansion 152

7.2 Consensus Inflation 158

7.3 The Chaotic Model 165

7.4 Predictions 168

7.5 A Cyclic Universe 169

8 Cosmic Microwave Background 175

8.1 The CMB Temperature 176

8.2 Temperature Anisotropies 180

8.3 Polarization 185

8.4 Model Testing and Parameter Estimation 189

9 Dark Matter 199

9.1 Virially Bound Systems 200

9.2 Galaxies 203

9.3 Clusters 208

9.4 Merging Galaxy Clusters 211

9.5 Dark Matter Candidates 213

9.6 The Cold Dark Matter Paradigm 218

10 Cosmic Structures 223

10.1 Density Fluctuations 223

10.2 Structure Formation 228

11 Dark Energy 235

11.1 The Cosmological Constant 235

11.2 Single Field Models 238

11.3 f (R) Models 246

11.4 Extra Dimensions 248

12 Epilogue 255

Tables 257

Index 261

Matts Roos is Emeritus Professor in Particle Physics at the University of Helsinki, Physics Department, where he is still active in research and postgraduate teaching. Roos is a member of the Finnish Physical Society, honorary member of The Physical Society in Finland, and founding member of the Particle Data Group which produces the biannual compilation published as Review of Particle Physics. He is also a member of the International Astronomical Union, the Steering Committee of the COSMO conferences, and a honorary member of the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science, Finnish Alumni Club.