Università di Catania

                                          Academic Year 2000-2001 

         GRADUATE COURSE IN COSMOLOGY 

         Lecturer: Dr. Vincenzo ANTONUCCIO-DELOGU 
 
                                    (Osservatorio Astrofisico di Catania)
                                            

THE STANDARD COSMOLOGICAL MODEL
• Observational evidences: Cosmic Microwave Background's fluctuations isotropy, Redshift Surveys, Bulk Flows (great Attractor, Shapley Supercluster)
  
• Einstein equations. - Isotropy and Homogenetity of the Universe at large scales - Homogeneous and isotropic solutions - Friedman-Lemaitre-Robertson-Walker models.
  
• Photons' propagation in LFRW models. Rdeshift. Distances and luminosities in LFRW models. Cosmological horizons. Causality problems.
  
• Evolution of perturbations in LFRW models. Gauge invariance in General Relativity. Problems of the Standard Cosmological model.
  
• Galaxy rotation curves. Dynamical evidence for the presence of dark Matter (DM) in galaxies and clusters of galaxies. Measures of mass and M/L in galaxies, clusters and superclusters.
  
• Spatial distribution and clustering of large-scale structures. Statistics of LSS. N-point correlation functions and their measurement.
  
• Other statistics: counts-in-cells, cluster analysis, percolation, fractal dimensions, cumulants. Application to the measurement of cosmologically relevant quantities.
  
• Power spectra and distribution functions.
  
  FORMATION OF GALAXIES AND CLUSTERS OF GALAXIES
  
• Small-scale perturbations: Lagrangian approach - Zeldovich approximation - Comparison with N-body simulations.
  
• Small-scale perturbations: Eulerian approach - Liouville equation. Gravitational BBGKY hierarchy.
  
• Peculiarities of the statistical mechanics of self-gravitating systems (long-range nature of gravity, divergence of thermodynamic potentials).
  
• Mean-field theories of hierarchical clustering: results and limitations.Truncation of the gravitational BBGKY hierarchy. Self-similar solutions.
  
• Fractality versus homogeneity - Mass spectrum: Press-Schechter model - Theoretical justification of the PS model.
  
• Galaxy formation: the angular momentum problem - Monolithic collapse versus merging
  
• Clusters of galaxies: Optical properties - Morphological segregation- Butcher/Oemler effect - Relaxation and virialisation - Density and velocity profiles - Equilibrium models - Substructure
  
• Clusters of galaxies: X-ray emission - Beta models and variants thereof - Relationship: L_X - T_X, R-T_X - Cluster abundances and their cosmological significance.
  

   				Bibliography 
                                              
  

  References to published papers will be given during the lectures. The following textbooks are highly recommended:
  
  General
  
• General Relativity, by Robert M. Wald, University of Chicago Press (1984) (GBp 27.25)
• Cosmology - The Origin and Evolution of Cosmic Structures, by P. Coles and F. Lucchin, Wiley (1995) (GBp 24.95)
• A Linde , ``Lectures on Inflationary Cosmology'', hep-ph/94110082 (1994)
• A.R. Liddle and D. Lyth , Phys. Rep. 231 , 1 (1993 )
  
  Gravitational Lensing
  
• R. Narayan and M Bartelmann , ``Lectures on Gravitational Lensing'', astro-ph/9606001 (1996)
  
  

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  The final exam will consist of a seminar on some advanced topic and of a discussion on some of the above mentioned points.
  
  The entire course will consist of approximately 2 weeks of lessons, each of approx. 2 hours. At the end of every week an exercise class will be given. Students who will successfully pass the exercise classes will be exempted from the discussion during the exam

  Vincenzo Antonuccio-Delogu
  
  
  van@sunct.ct.astro.it,   Tlf: (095) 7332 318