Paper 3, Section II, D
The contents of a spatially homogeneous and isotropic universe are modelled as a finite mass of pressureless material whose radius evolves from some constant reference radius in proportion to the time-dependent scale factor , with
(i) Show that this motion leads to expansion governed by Hubble's Law. If this universe is expanding, explain why there will be a shift in the frequency of radiation between its emission from a distant object and subsequent reception by an observer. Define the redshift of the observed object in terms of the values of the scale factor at the times of emission and reception.
(ii) The expanding universal mass is given a small rotational perturbation, with angular velocity , and its angular momentum is subsequently conserved. If deviations from spherical expansion can be neglected, show that its linear rotational velocity will fall as , where you should determine the value of . Show that this perturbation will become increasingly insignificant compared to the expansion velocity as the universe expands if .
(iii) A distant cloud of intermingled hydrogen (H) atoms and carbon monoxide (CO) molecules has its redshift determined simultaneously in two ways: by detecting radiation from atomic hydrogen and by detecting radiation from rotational transitions in CO molecules. The ratio of the atomic transition frequency to the CO rotational transition frequency is proportional to , where is the fine structure constant. It is suggested that there may be a small difference in the value of the constant between the times of emission and reception of the radiation from the cloud.
Show that the difference in the redshift values for the cloud, , determined separately by observations of the and transitions, is related to , the difference in values at the times of reception and emission, by
(iv) The universe today contains of its total density in the form of pressureless matter and in the form of a dark energy with constant redshift-independent density. If these are the only two significant constituents of the universe, show that their densities were equal when the scale factor of the universe was approximately equal to of its present value.