Cosmic Acceleration versus Axion‐Photon Mixing

Abstract

Axion-photon mixing has been proposed as an alternative to acceleration as the explanation for supernovae dimming. We point out that the loss of photons due to this mixing will induce a strong asymmetry between the luminosity, d L (z), and angular diameter distance, d A (z), since the latter is unaffected by mixing. In a first search for such an asymmetry, we introduce a dimensionless mixing amplitude k such that k ¼ 0 if no photons are lost and k % 1 if axion-photon mixing occurs. The best fit to Type Ia supernovae and radio galaxy data is k ¼ À0:3 þ0:6 À0:4 (95% confidence level), corresponding to an unphysical, negative mixing length. This same argument limits the attenuation of light from supernovae due to dust. We show that future d L and d A data from the Supernova/Acceleration Probe and galaxy surveys such as DEEP2 and KAOS will detect or rule out mixing at more than 5 almost independently of the dark energy dynamics. Finally, we discuss the constraints from the near-maximal polarization of the gamma-ray burst (GRB) GRB 021206. Since mixing reduces the polarization of distant sources, future observations of high-redshift GRBs will provide orthogonal constraints on axion-photon mixing and related scenarios.

Constraints on the CMB temperature-redshift dependence from SZ and distance measurements

“…Since Lorentz violations are strongly constrained at low energies [32], and in particular at optical wavelengths, the determination of d L from SN observations can be used [20,21,22,14,19] together with other distance measurements in order to place direct bounds on photon number violation through Eq. (30).…”

Secondary anisotropies of the CMB

“…This is done especially when searching for violations of the duality relation between the angular diameter distance and the luminosity distance. The test of the reciprocity relation (between the source angular distance and the observer area distance) and the distance duality relation that derives from it was proposed as an additional test of dark energy (Bassett & Kunz 2004). While the reciprocity relation holds when photons follow null geodesic and that the geodesics deviation equation is valid, the distance duality relation will hold if the reciprocity relation is valid and the number of photons is conserved.…”

Constraining axionlike particles using the distance-duality relation

“…[eV] is violated in axion-photon mixing scenario, which is crucial to DDR validity [74][75][76][77]. We employ the latest observation of DDR tests and present the limits from the observed scatter in relation.…”

“…In this work we employ the latest distance duality relation (DDR) limits observed by Holand & Barros [73] to constrain the axion-photon coupling [74][75][76][77]. We perform full 3D simulations for ALP-photon mixing in expanding ΛCDM universe, particularly for the galaxy clusters used in Holand & Barros [73] analysis.…”