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Title: Constraining Inflation with the BICEP/Keck CMB Polarization Experiments
The BICEP/Keck (BK) series of cosmic microwave background (CMB) polarization experiments has, over the past decade and a half, produced a series of field-leading constraints on cosmic inflation via measurements of the “B-mode” polarization of the CMB. Primordial B modes are directly tied to the amplitude of primordial gravitational waves (PGW), their strength parameterized by the tensor-to-scalar ratio, r, and thus the energy scale of inflation. Having set the most sensitive constraints to-date on r, σ(r) = 0.009 (r0.05 < 0.036, 95% C.L.) using data through the 2018 observing season (“BK18”), the BICEP/Keck program has continued to improve its dataset in the years since. We give a brief overview of the BK program and the “BK18” result before discussing the program’s ongoing efforts, including the deployment and performance of the Keck Array’s successor instrument, BICEP Array, improvements to data processing and internal consistency testing, new techniques such as delensing, and how those will ultimately serve to allow BK reach σ(r) ≲ 0.003 using data through the 2027 observing season.  more » « less
Award ID(s):
2220445
PAR ID:
10520458
Author(s) / Creator(s):
; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; more » ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; « less
Publisher / Repository:
Proceedings of Recontres de Moriond
Date Published:
Format(s):
Medium: X
Sponsoring Org:
National Science Foundation
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