Search for: All records

Abstract We present new cosmological parameter constraints from the eBOSS Lyman-α forest survey. We use a new theoretical model and likelihood based on the PRIYA simulation suite. PRIYA is the first suite to resolve the Lyman-αforest in a (120 Mpc/h)³volume, using a multi-fidelity emulation technique. We use PRIYA to predict Lyman-αforest observables with ≲ 1% interpolation error over an 11 dimensional (9 simulated, 2 in post-processing) parameter space. We identify an internal tension within the flux power spectrum data. Once the discrepant data is removed, we find the primeval scalar spectral index measured at a pivot scale ofk₀= 0.78 Mpc^-1to ben_P= 1.009^+0.027_-0.018at 68% confidence. This measurement from the Lyman-αforest flux power spectrum alone is in reasonable agreement with Planck, and in tension with earlier eBOSS analyses. The amplitude of matter fluctuations isσ₈= 0.733^+0.026_-0.029at 68% confidence, in agreement with Dark Energy Survey weak lensing measurements and other small-scale structure probes and in tension with CMB measurements from Planck and ACT. The effective optical depth to Lyman-α  photons from our pipeline is in good agreement with earlier high resolution measurements. We find a linear power atz= 3 andk= 0.009 s/km of Δ²_L= 0.302^+0.024_-0.027with a slopen_eff= -2.264^+0.026_-0.018. Our flux power spectrum only chains prefer a low level of heating during helium reionization. When we add IGM temperature data we findn_P= 0.983 ± 0.020 andσ₈= 0.703^+0.023_-0.027. Our chains prefer an early and long helium reionization event, as suggested by measurements from the helium Lyman-αforest. In the near future we will use our pipeline to infer cosmological parameters from the DESI Lyman-α data.