CAREER: Novel Approaches and Instrumentation for 21cm Cosmology Experiments

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Redshifted emission from the 21cm hyperfine transition of neutral hydrogen has gained considerable attention as a unique tracer of the primordial intergalactic medium. This award will enable the PI to develop the foundation of a next generation of 21cm cosmology instrumentation, incorporating techniques and principles learned from his current Precision Array to Probe the Epoch of Reionization (PAPER) experiment. The PI will construct three prototype multi-element experiments that will allow him to study three distinct cosmological epochs: the cosmic dark ages, the epoch of reionization, and the onset of baryon acoustic oscillations. The antenna designs and digitization electronics from these experiments will in turn provide invaluable information on techniques to remove contaminating astrophysical foregrounds in future instruments.The birth of the first luminous objects (stars, black holes) in the universe that ultimately stems from the Big Bang is one of the last unexplored phases of cosmic evolution. The instruments that will be produced as part of this award will facilitate transformational science in this area, and will provide key constraints on the large-scale structure of the universe, as well as the evolution of cosmological expansion. The award will also enable the PI to train the next generation of instrument builders by offering internships for students at UC Berkeley's Radio Astronomy Laboratory. Finally, the PI will produce numerous public-domain pedagogical videos, which will enable a cadre of instrumentalists and students to quickly acquire basic proficiency in radio-astronomy instrumentation.