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C3602: Physical Cosmology
and Extragalactic Astronomy
Instructor: Zoltan Haiman
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Classes are held Mondays & Wednesdays, 2:40-3:55pm in Pupin 1332.
Office hours: Fridays, 10-11am or by appointment.
This course provides an introduction to modern cosmology, giving an overview of both the theoretical framework,
and of the key observations.
The emphasis will be on physical ideas, but we will use calculus and solve simple differential equations.
No prior knowledge of cosmology will be assumed. However, you will get more out of this class if you have
already taken one or two physics courses and are familiar with concepts in thermodynamics.
If you have questions about the appropriate level of pre-requisites, please ask me.
See the official Course Bulletin Entry for further details.
1. Provide you with conceptual foundations of modern cosmology. 2. Enable you to appreciate recent discoveries by understanding their context.
1. The main source for the course will be "Introduction to Cosmology" by Barbara Ryden (Addison Wesley, 2003).
This textbook is required.
2. We will occassionally use other books and materials. Additional books are
"An Introduction to Modern Cosmology" by Andrew Liddle (Wiley, 2003).
"Foundations of Modern Cosmology" by John F. Hawley and Katherine A. Holcomb (Oxford Univ Press, 1998),
"Structure Formation in the Universe" by T. Padmanabhan (Cambridge University Press, 1995).
"An Introduction to Cosmology" by Jayant Vishnu Narlikar (Cambridge University Press, 2002).
"The Early Universe" by E. W. Kolb and M. S. Turner (Addison-Wesley, 1993).
"Spacetime and Geometry" by Sean M. Carroll (Addison-Wesley, 2004).
If you wish, you can purchase these books as well, but they are not required.
Xerox copies of material from these books will be handed out as appropriate.
3. The above books have been placed on reserve at the Physics library
(8th floor of Pupin), and are available at the University bookstore,
and/or also on amazon.com and on bn.com.
4. This website will be maintained at www.astro.columbia.edu/~zoltan/Teaching/2008.Spring/c3602.html.
Presentations from some of the lectures will be posted at this site, as well as copies of the problem sets.
The reading assigments are tentative, and will be continuously updated on the website as we go along.
Problems Sets (40%): Approximately six problem sets will be handed out (see tentative schedule below) Final Exam (30%): In-class, closed book exam. Midterm (20%): An hour exam during class on March 12. Class Participation (10%): Please attend regularly and think of questions to ask in class.
You are encouraged to work together with other students on the problem sets, but must present your own write-up.
I would greatly appreciate your feedback about all aspect of this class.
Your opinions can (really!) contribute to shaping this class.
Monday Wednesday
Week 1:
(1/21,23)Overview I: Historical Introduction
Reading: H&H, Ch. 2 plus pages 264-267Week 2:
(1/28,30)Overview II: Census of the Extragalactic Universe
Reading: slides only (click above) [PS #1 handed out]Overview III: The Standard Model of Cosmology
Reading: Ryden Ch. 2.Week 3:
(2/4,2/6)Newtonian Gravity: Derivation of the Friedmann Equation
Reading: Ryden Ch. 4.1The Fluid Equation and Equations of State
Reading: Ryden Ch. 4.2 & 4.3 [PS #1 due]Week 4:
(2/11,13)Guest Lecture by Prof. Arlin Crotts
Reading: TBD [PS #2 handed out]Guest Lecture by Prof. Arlin Crotts
Reading: TBDWeek 5:
(2/18,20)Geometry and Distances in The Expanding Universe
Reading: Ryden Ch. 3.1-3.4, 7.2, 7.3The Cosmological Constant
Reading: Ryden Ch. 4.4 [PS #2 due]Week 6:
(2/25,27)Cosmological Models I: Single-Component Universes
Reading: Ryden Ch. 5 [PS #3 handed out]Cosmological Models II: Multi-Component Universes
Reading: Ryden Ch. 6Week 7:
(3/3,5)Measuring the Dark Matter Density
Reading: Ryden Ch. 8Dark Matter in Galactic Halos and Gravitational Lensing
Lecture notes [PS #3 due]Week 8:
(3/10,12)Dark Energy and Modern Tests of the Cosmological Model
Reading: Ryden Ch. 7MIDTERM EXAM
[review sheet](3/17,19) Spring break Week 9:
(3/24,26)Cosmic Microwave Bacgkround I: Thermal History and Recombination
Reading: Ryden Ch. 9.1, 9.2, 9.3Cosmic Microwave Bacgkround II: Anisotropies
Reading: Ryden Ch. 9.4 [PS #4 handed out]Week 10:
(3/31,4/2)Early Universe: Nucleosynthesis
Reading: Ryden Ch. 10Early Universe: Nucleosynthesis
Reading: Ryden Ch. 10Week 11:
(4/7,9)Early Universe: Inflation (puzzles)
Reading: Ryden Ch. 11.1-11.3 [PS #4 due]Early Universe: Inflation (solutions)
Reading: Ryden Ch. 11.4 [PS #5 handed out]Week 12:
(4/14,16)Physics of Inflation
Reading: Ryden Ch. 11.5; Kolb & Turner, Chapter 8Growth of Density Fluctuations
12.1 & 12.3Week 13:
(4/21,23)Structure Formation: Linear Growth
Reading: Ryden Ch. 12.2; Kolb & Turner, pp. 341-355 [PS #5 due]Structure Formation: Linear Growth and Power Spectrum
Reading: Padmanabhan 4.1 & 4.2 [PS #6 handed out]Week 14:
(4/28,30)The Processed Power Spectrum
Reading: 4.7 & pp. 210-211Nonlinear Evolution
Reading: Padmanabhan, pp. 273-285;Week 15:
(5/5)Dark Matter Halos and Galaxy Formation
Reading: Padmanabhan 8.3, 8.4, 8.7, 8.8, 8.9 & pp. 210-211 [PS #6 due]Week 16:
(5/9-16)FINAL EXAM on May 14th, 1:10pm-4:00pm in the classroom
[review sheet]