Spitzer Space Telescope - Theoretical Research Proposal #40197


Anisotropy in the Cosmic Near Infrared Background: Simulations vs Observations

Principal Investigator: Eiichiro Komatsu
           Institution: University of Texas, Austin

     Technical Contact: Eiichiro Komatsu, University of Texas, Austin

Co-Investigators: 
Paul Shapiro, University of Texas at Austin                           
Elizabeth Fernandez, University of Texas at Austin                    

Science Category: cosmic infrared background 
Dollars Approved: 74999 

Abstract:
The goal of the proposed research is to make the most detailed and reliable
theoretical prediction for the distribution of fluctuations in the cosmic near
infrared background from unresolved high-z galaxies and ionized bubbles at z>7,
taking into account the large scale structure as well as inhomogeneous
distribution of ionized (HII) bubbles around sources. We shall use both
analytical calculations (Fernandez & Komatsu 2006) and numerical simulations
(Iliev et al. 2006) for completing this task. In particular we will be the first
to use high-fidelity large-scale simulations of the cosmic reionization to
calculate fluctuations in the cosmic near infrared background. The results from
our research will be made publicly available in the form of simulated maps of
the near infrared background as well as the angular power spectrum computed from
the simulated maps. Our products should be immediately useful for interpreting
the power spectrum of significant fluctuations (Kashlinsky et al. 2007; Cooray
et al. 2007) detected in the Spitzer data from the GOODS Spitzer Legacy Program.
The data from other Spitzer Legacy Programs, such as S-COSMOS, which do
wide-field deep imaging surveys in the near infrared bands, should also benefit
from our products.