The Lyα forest and the Cosmic Web
Abstract
The accurate description of the properties of the Lyman-α forest is a spectacular success of the Cold Dark Matter theory of cosmological structure formation. After a brief review of early models, it is shown how numerical simulations have demonstrated the Lyman-α forest emerges from the cosmic web in the quasi-linear regime of overdensity. The quasi-linear nature of the structures allows accurate modeling, providing constraints on cosmological models over a unique range of scales and enabling the Lyman-α forest to serve as a bridge to the more complex problem of galaxy formation.
- Publication:
-
The Zeldovich Universe: Genesis and Growth of the Cosmic Web
- Pub Date:
- October 2016
- DOI:
- 10.1017/S1743921316010152
- Bibcode:
- 2016IAUS..308..347M
- Keywords:
-
- intergalactic medium;
- quasars: absorption lines;
- galaxies: formation;
- large-scale structure of universe;
- dark matter;
- cosmological parameters