Exploring the High-Redshift Universe with Millimeter-Wave Line Intensity Mapping
Dr. Kirit Karkare, SLAC / Stanford University /KIPAC
Abstract: Answering outstanding questions in cosmology - such as understanding the physics of inflation, dark energy, and reionization - requires observations of ever-increasing volumes of the universe. In this talk I will discuss a new technique for measuring large volumes at high redshift: line intensity mapping (LIM) of far-IR emission lines from galaxies. This technique is enabled by advances in millimeter-wave spectrometer technology. I will introduce SPT-SLIM, a pathfinder experiment at the South Pole Telescope which will demonstrate the use of superconducting on-chip spectrometers for LIM. SPT-SLIM targets galaxies from the peak of cosmic star formation, about 10 billion years ago. I will then discuss the future of mm-wave LIM and the technical advances needed to develop this technique into a next-generation cosmological observable.
About Dr. Kirit Karkare
Dr. Karkare is an associate staff scientist at SLAC. He develops millimeter-wave instrumentation to observe the universe at the largest scales, testing the physics of inflation, dark energy, and early galaxy formation. With the BICEP, CMB-S4, SuperSpec, and SPT-SLIM collaborations, he works on telescopes deployed at the South Pole and the Large Millimeter Telescope in Mexico. He completed his Ph.D. at Harvard in 2017 and held postdoctoral fellowships at the University of Chicago and Fermilab.
Audience:
