The dynamics of dark matter from subgalactic to cluster scales

点击翻译按钮获取中文摘要

There is now overwhelming evidence from many different types of astronomical observations that our Universe consists almost entirely of exotic forms of energy and matter, unknown on Earth. In particular, observations of individual galaxies, clusters of galaxies, and of the Cosmic Microwave Background, together with a knowledge of the local abundance of light elements, indicate that 85% or more of the matter in the Universe is dark matter, an exotic substance that does not produce or interact with light in almost any way. The properties of dark matter are naturally hard to determine, given its effective invisibility; it manifests itself only through gravity. The main goal of my research programme is to model the spatial distribution and dynamics of dark matter around visible structures such as galaxies and clusters. I have developed novel computational methods to do so, methods which provide a 10,000 increase in speed over traditional numerical techniques. I am now starting to apply these methods to a broad range of astrophysical puzzles, ranging from the formation of high-redshift galaxies to the behaviour dark matter in the vicinity of our solar system.