Constraining neutrino mass using the large-scale H i distribution in the post-reionization epoch

Abstract

The neutral intergalactic medium in the post-reionization epoch allows us to study cosmological structure formation through the observation of the redshifted 21 cm signal and the Lyman α forest. We investigate the possibility of measuring the total neutrino mass through the suppression of power in the matter power spectrum. We investigate the possibility of measuring the neutrino mass through its imprint on the cross-correlation power spectrum of the 21 cm signal and the Lyman α forest. We consider a radio-interferometric measurement of the 21 cm signal with a SKA1-mid-like radio telescope and a BOSS-like Lyman α forest survey. A Fisher matrix analysis shows that at the fiducial redshift z = 2.5, a 10 000 h 21 cm observation distributed equally over 25 radio pointings and a Lyman α forest survey with 30 quasars lines of sights in 1deg2, allows us to measure Ων at a 3.25 per cent level. A total of 25 000 h radio-interferometric observation distributed equally over 25 radio pointings and a Lyman α survey with will allow Ων to be measured at a 2.26 per cent level. This corresponds to an idealized measurement of ∑mν at the precision of (100 ± 2.26)meV and fν = Ων/Ωm at 2.49 per cent level.