2025 Project Description

Probing Cosmic Alignments: Investigating Shape Correlations Beyond Galaxies

Supervisors

Junsup Shim
Find out more about supervisors on ASIAA website

Task Description and Goals

Are cosmic structures in the universe randomly oriented? Observations suggest that the shapes of elliptical galaxies —and dark matter halos in N-body simulations — are aligned in specific directions. These intrinsic shape alignments offer valuable insights into the cosmic initial conditions and evolution.

In this project, we explore whether similar alignments exist in cosmic structures beyond galaxies. Specifically, we will examine the shape alignments of regions surrounding critical points in the underlying matter distribution. Critical points are key geometrical features that encode the topological properties of a field and serve as anchors for cosmic structures within the Cosmic Web. For example, galaxies (and dark matter halos) typically correspond to peak-type critical points, which are already known to exhibit alignment. This project will extend the investigation to other critical points, such as minima and saddles, to determine if they also show alignment patterns. Detecting these additional alignment signals could provide new, complementary cosmological insights.

As part of this project, the student will:
1) gain hands-on research experience in cosmology,
2) learn concepts of large-scale structures,
and 3) develop practical skills in analyzing data.

Required Background

Basic knowledge of Physics and Mathematics.
Basic knowledge and skills in computer programming are desirable.