Light propagation in an inhomogeneous universe.

dc.contributor.authorRose, Hamishen
dc.date.accessioned2012-01-03T20:37:48Z
dc.date.available2012-01-03T20:37:48Z
dc.date.issued2002en
dc.description.abstractThis thesis examines the effect of inhomogeneities on the magnitude-redshift relationship, focusing particularly on the redshift. We show that a perturbed FRW universe which has the same global behaviour as an exact FRW universe does not have the same light propagation behaviour due to the relationship between redshift and the radial coordinate being influenced by the inhomogeneities introduced. The change in redshift along a light beam depends on the rate of expansion of space so an understanding of the effect of inhomogeneities on the local rate of expansion of space is necessary in order to study the effect of inhomogeneities on redshift. We create a new description of the evolution of matter fluctuations in the weakly non-linear regime which also describes a relationship between the matter density and the local expansion rate of space. This is subsequently used in the development of a new method of calculating the relationship between the angular diameter distance and the redshift of a distant object. We use the new magnitude-redshift relationship in conjunction with the supernova data to estimate cosmological parameters and find that - to a high level of confidence Ω∆ is non-zero - most likely flat universe is one with cosmological parameters close to {Ωm) Ω∆} = {0.3, 0.7}.en
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/10092/6183
dc.identifier.urihttp://dx.doi.org/10.26021/6040
dc.language.isoen
dc.publisherUniversity of Canterbury. Physicsen
dc.relation.isreferencedbyNZCUen
dc.rightsCopyright Hamish Roseen
dc.rights.urihttps://canterbury.libguides.com/rights/thesesen
dc.titleLight propagation in an inhomogeneous universe.en
dc.typeTheses / Dissertations
thesis.degree.disciplinePhysics
thesis.degree.grantorUniversity of Canterburyen
thesis.degree.levelDoctoralen
thesis.degree.nameDoctor of Philosophyen
uc.bibnumber840442
uc.collegeFaculty of Scienceen
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