Calendar of Events

Speaker:  Abby Vieregg, University of Chicago

Abstract:  Precision measurements of the Cosmic Microwave Background (CMB) are a unique probe of the fundamental physics that governs the evolution of the universe. In particular, measurements of the polarization signature in the CMB constrain the energy scale of inflation in the extremely early universe and the number of light relic particles in the early universe, as well as probing dark energy, dark matter, and the masses of neutrinos. I will discuss the current state of the field, and describe experimental efforts that specifically target constraining primordial B-mode polarization from inflation. In particular, combining data from the BICEP suite of telescopes and the South Pole Telescope, all currently operating at the South Pole, will significantly improve the sensitivity to an inflationary B-mode signal. Going forward, CMB-S4, a proposed large joint NSF/DOE CMB experiment, has a broad scientific portfolio that includes inflation, and is planned to begin construction late in the decade.

Host:  Yuri Gershtein