Search

We study the role of $1\rightarrow2$ and $1\rightarrow3$ processes in triple charmonium production. We see that the ratio of effective cross sections of TPS and DPS only moderately depends on charmonium transverse momenta, but the total DPS and TPS cross sections each separately may have rather strong dependence on charmonia transverse momenta in the central kinematics that can be studied experimentally., Comment: 15 pages, 7 figures

We study the contribution of color correlations to Double Parton Scattering (DPS). We show that there is a specific class of Feynman diagrams related to so called 1 \textrightarrow{} 2 processes when the contribution of these color correlations is not Sudakov suppressed with the transverse scales. The split scale increases with the transverse scale Q, with color correlations being up to 5-10 percent of singlet ones. The effective absence of Sudakov suppression gives hope that although they are small relative to color singlet correlations, they eventually can be observed., Comment: 60 pages 25 figures,6 tables

We report new measurements of millimeter-wave power spectra in the angular multipole range $2000 \le \ell \le 11,000$ (angular scales $5^\prime \gtrsim \theta \gtrsim 1^\prime$). By adding 95 and 150\,GHz data from the low-noise 500 deg$^2$ SPTpol survey to the SPT-SZ three-frequency 2540 deg$^2$ survey, we substantially reduce the uncertainties in these bands. These power spectra include contributions from the primary cosmic microwave background, cosmic infrared background, radio galaxies, and thermal and kinematic Sunyaev-Zel'dovich (SZ) effects. The data favor a thermal SZ (tSZ) power at 143\,GHz of $D^{\rm tSZ}_{3000} = 3.42 \pm 0.54~ \mu {\rm K}^2$ and a kinematic SZ (kSZ) power of $D^{\rm kSZ}_{3000} = 3.0 \pm 1.0~ \mu {\rm K}^2$. This is the first measurement of kSZ power at $\ge 3\,\sigma$. We study the implications of the measured kSZ power for the epoch of reionization, finding the duration of reionization to be $\Delta z_{re} = 1.0^{+1.6}_{-0.7}$ ($\Delta z_{re}< 4.1$ at 95% confidence), when combined with our previously published tSZ bispectrum measurement., Comment: Submitted to ApJ, 16 pages. (revised portions of the introduction and description of bandpower estimation)

We present a measurement of the $B$-mode polarization power spectrum (the $BB$ spectrum) from 100 $\mathrm{deg}^2$ of sky observed with SPTpol, a polarization-sensitive receiver currently installed on the South Pole Telescope. The observations used in this work were taken during 2012 and early 2013 and include data in spectral bands centered at 95 and 150 GHz. We report the $BB$ spectrum in five bins in multipole space, spanning the range $300 \le \ell \le 2300$, and for three spectral combinations: 95 GHz $\times$ 95 GHz, 95 GHz $\times$ 150 GHz, and 150 GHz $\times$ 150 GHz. We subtract small ($< 0.5 \sigma$ in units of statistical uncertainty) biases from these spectra and account for the uncertainty in those biases. The resulting power spectra are inconsistent with zero power but consistent with predictions for the $BB$ spectrum arising from the gravitational lensing of $E$-mode polarization. If we assume no other source of $BB$ power besides lensed $B$ modes, we determine a preference for lensed $B$ modes of $4.9 \sigma$. After marginalizing over tensor power and foregrounds, namely polarized emission from galactic dust and extragalactic sources, this significance is $4.3 \sigma$. Fitting for a single parameter, $A_\mathrm{lens}$, that multiplies the predicted lensed $B$-mode spectrum, and marginalizing over tensor power and foregrounds, we find $A_\mathrm{lens} = 1.08 \pm 0.26$, indicating that our measured spectra are consistent with the signal expected from gravitational lensing. The data presented here provide the best measurement to date of the $B$-mode power spectrum on these angular scales., Comment: 21 pages, 4 figures

We present a measurement of the cosmic microwave background (CMB) gravitational lensing potential using data from the first two seasons of observations with SPTpol, the polarization-sensitive receiver currently installed on the South Pole Telescope (SPT). The observations used in this work cover 100 deg$^2$ of sky with arcminute resolution at 150 GHz. Using a quadratic estimator, we make maps of the CMB lensing potential from combinations of CMB temperature and polarization maps. We combine these lensing potential maps to form a minimum-variance (MV) map. The lensing potential is measured with a signal-to-noise ratio of greater than one for angular multipoles between $100< L <250$. This is the highest signal-to-noise mass map made from the CMB to date and will be powerful in cross-correlation with other tracers of large-scale structure. We calculate the power spectrum of the lensing potential for each estimator, and we report the value of the MV power spectrum between $100< L <2000$ as our primary result. We constrain the ratio of the spectrum to a fiducial $\Lambda$CDM model to be $A_{\rm MV}=0.92 \pm 0.14 {\rm\, (Stat.)} \pm 0.08 {\rm\, (Sys.)}$. Restricting ourselves to polarized data only, we find $A_{\rm POL}=0.92 \pm 0.24 {\rm\, (Stat.)} \pm 0.11 {\rm\, (Sys.)}$. This measurement rejects the hypothesis of no lensing at $5.9 \sigma$ using polarization data alone, and at $14 \sigma$ using both temperature and polarization data., Comment: 16 pages, 8 figures

We present measurements of $E$-mode polarization and temperature-$E$-mode correlation in the cosmic microwave background (CMB) using data from the first season of observations with SPTpol, the polarization-sensitive receiver currently installed on the South Pole Telescope (SPT). The observations used in this work cover 100~\sqdeg\ of sky with arcminute resolution at $150\,$GHz. We report the $E$-mode angular auto-power spectrum ($EE$) and the temperature-$E$-mode angular cross-power spectrum ($TE$) over the multipole range $500 < \ell \leq5000$. These power spectra improve on previous measurements in the high-$\ell$ (small-scale) regime. We fit the combination of the SPTpol power spectra, data from \planck\, and previous SPT measurements with a six-parameter \LCDM cosmological model. We find that the best-fit parameters are consistent with previous results. The improvement in high-$\ell$ sensitivity over previous measurements leads to a significant improvement in the limit on polarized point-source power: after masking sources brighter than 50\,mJy in unpolarized flux at 150\,GHz, we find a 95\% confidence upper limit on unclustered point-source power in the $EE$ spectrum of $D_\ell = \ell (\ell+1) C_\ell / 2 \pi < 0.40 \ \mu{\mbox{K}}^2$ at $\ell=3000$, indicating that future $EE$ measurements will not be limited by power from unclustered point sources in the multipole range $\ell < 3600$, and possibly much higher in $\ell.$

We present measurements of secondary cosmic microwave background (CMB) anisotropies and cosmic infrared background (CIB) fluctuations using data from the South Pole Telescope (SPT) covering the complete 2540 sq.deg. SPT-SZ survey area. Data in the three SPT-SZ frequency bands centered at 95, 150, and 220 GHz, are used to produce six angular power spectra (three single-frequency auto-spectra and three cross-spectra) covering the multipole range 2000 < ell < 11000 (angular scales 5' > \theta > 1'). These are the most precise measurements of the angular power spectra at ell > 2500 at these frequencies. The main contributors to the power spectra at these angular scales and frequencies are the primary CMB, CIB, thermal and kinematic Sunyaev-Zel'dovich effects (tSZ and kSZ), and radio galaxies. We include a constraint on the tSZ power from a measurement of the tSZ bispectrum from 800 sq.deg. of the SPT-SZ survey. We measure the tSZ power at 143 GHz to be DtSZ = 4.08 +0.58 -0.67 \mu K^2 and the kSZ power to be DkSZ = 2.9 +- 1.3 \mu K^2. The data prefer positive kSZ power at 98.1% CL. We measure a correlation coefficient of \xi = 0.113 +0.057 -0.054 between sources of tSZ and CIB power, with \xi < 0 disfavored at a confidence level of 99.0%. The constraint on kSZ power can be interpreted as an upper limit on the duration of reionization. When the post-reionization homogeneous kSZ signal is accounted for, we find an upper limit on the duration \Delta z < 5.4 at 95% CL., Comment: Accepted by ApJ (v2 is accepted version); 12 figures; 24 pages

We present thermal Sunyaev-Zel'dovich effect (SZE) measurements for 42 galaxy clusters observed at 150 GHz with the APEX-SZ experiment. For each cluster, we model the pressure profile and calculate the integrated Comptonization $Y$ to estimate the total thermal energy of the intracluster medium (ICM). We compare the measured $Y$ values to X-ray observables of the ICM from the literature (cluster gas mass $M_{\rm{gas}}$, temperature $T_X$, and $Y_X =M_{\rm{gas}}T_X$) that relate to total cluster mass. We measure power law scaling relations, including an intrinsic scatter, between the SZE and X-ray observables for three subsamples within the set of 42 clusters that have uniform X-ray analysis in the literature. We observe that differences between these X-ray analyses introduce significant variability into the measured scaling relations, particularly affecting the normalization. For all three subsamples, we find results consistent with a self-similar model of cluster evolution dominated by gravitational effects. Comparing to predictions from numerical simulations, these scaling relations prefer models that include cooling and feedback in the ICM. Lastly, we measure an intrinsic scatter of $\sim28$ per cent in the $Y-Y_X\,$ scaling relation for all three subsamples., Comment: 17 pages, 4 figures, submitted to MNRAS

These reports present the results of the 2013 Community Summer Study of the APS Division of Particles and Fields ("Snowmass 2013") on the future program of particle physics in the U.S. Chapter 8, on the Instrumentation Frontier, discusses the instrumentation needs of future experiments in the Energy, Intensity, and Cosmic Frontiers, promising new technologies for particle physics research, and issues of gathering resources for long-term research in this area., Comment: 50 pages

We describe a method for measuring the integrated Comptonization (YSZ) of clusters of galaxies from measurements of the Sunyaev-Zel'dovich (SZ) effect in multiple frequency bands and use this method to characterize a sample of galaxy clusters detected in South Pole Telescope (SPT) data. We test this method on simulated cluster observations and verify that it can accurately recover cluster parameters with negligible bias. In realistic simulations of an SPT-like survey, with realizations of cosmic microwave background anisotropy, point sources, and atmosphere and instrumental noise at typical SPT-SZ survey levels, we find that YSZ is most accurately determined in an aperture comparable to the SPT beam size. We demonstrate the utility of this method to measure YSZ and to constrain mass scaling relations using X-ray mass estimates for a sample of 18 galaxy clusters from the SPT-SZ survey. Measuring YSZ within a 0.75' radius aperture, we find an intrinsic log-normal scatter of 21+/-11% in YSZ at a fixed mass. Measuring YSZ within a 0.3 Mpc projected radius (equivalent to 0.75' at the survey median redshift z = 0.6), we find a scatter of 26+/-9%. Prior to this study, the SPT observable found to have the lowest scatter with mass was cluster detection significance. We demonstrate, from both simulations and SPT observed clusters, that YSZ measured within an aperture comparable to the SPT beam size is equivalent, in terms of scatter with cluster mass, to SPT cluster detection significance., Comment: Submitted to ApJ. 13 pages, 10 figures

The adiabatic evolution of the temperature of the cosmic microwave background (CMB) is a key prediction of standard cosmology. We study deviations from the expected adiabatic evolution of the CMB temperature of the form $T(z) =T_0(1+z)^{1-\alpha}$ using measurements of the spectrum of the Sunyaev Zel'dovich Effect with the South Pole Telescope (SPT). We present a method for using the ratio of the Sunyaev Zel'dovich signal measured at 95 and 150 GHz in the SPT data to constrain the temperature of the CMB. We demonstrate that this approach provides unbiased results using mock observations of clusters from a new set of hydrodynamical simulations. We apply this method to a sample of 158 SPT-selected clusters, spanning the redshift range $0.05 < z < 1.35$, and measure $\alpha = 0.017^{+0.030}_{-0.028}$, consistent with the standard model prediction of $\alpha=0$. In combination with other published results, we constrain $\alpha = 0.011 \pm 0.016$, an improvement of $\sim 20\%$ over published constraints. This measurement also provides a strong constraint on the effective equation of state in models of decaying dark energy $w_\mathrm{eff} = -0.987^{+0.016}_{-0.017}$., Comment: Submitted to MNRAS Letters

We present optical spectroscopy of galaxies in clusters detected through the Sunyaev-Zel'dovich (SZ) effect with the South Pole Telescope (SPT). We report our own measurements of $61$ spectroscopic cluster redshifts, and $48$ velocity dispersions each calculated with more than $15$ member galaxies. This catalog also includes $19$ dispersions of SPT-observed clusters previously reported in the literature. The majority of the clusters in this paper are SPT-discovered; of these, most have been previously reported in other SPT cluster catalogs, and five are reported here as SPT discoveries for the first time. By performing a resampling analysis of galaxy velocities, we find that unbiased velocity dispersions can be obtained from a relatively small number of member galaxies ($\lesssim 30$), but with increased systematic scatter. We use this analysis to determine statistical confidence intervals that include the effect of membership selection. We fit scaling relations between the observed cluster velocity dispersions and mass estimates from SZ and X-ray observables. In both cases, the results are consistent with the scaling relation between velocity dispersion and mass expected from dark-matter simulations. We measure a $\sim$30% log-normal scatter in dispersion at fixed mass, and a $\sim$10% offset in the normalization of the dispersion-mass relation when compared to the expectation from simulations, which is within the expected level of systematic uncertainty., Comment: Accepted to ApJ. 20 pages, 6 figures

The stability of Al-Mn transition edge sensor (TES) bolometers is studied as we vary the engineered TES transition, heat capacity, and/or coupling between the heat capacity and TES. We present thermal structure measurements of each of the 39 designs tested. The data is accurately fit by a two-body bolometer model, which allows us to extract the basic TES parameters that affect device stability. We conclude that parameters affecting device stability can be engineered for optimal device operation, and present the model parameters extracted for the different TES designs., Comment: 8 pages, 2 figures, 1 table. Proceedings of Low Temperature Detectors 15 (LTD-15). To be published in Journal of Low Temperature Physics (JLTP, SI:LTD15)

Gravitational lensing of the cosmic microwave background generates a curl pattern in the observed polarization. This "B-mode" signal provides a measure of the projected mass distribution over the entire observable Universe and also acts as a contaminant for the measurement of primordial gravity-wave signals. In this Letter we present the first detection of gravitational lensing B modes, using first-season data from the polarization-sensitive receiver on the South Pole Telescope (SPTpol). We construct a template for the lensing B-mode signal by combining E-mode polarization measured by SPTpol with estimates of the lensing potential from a Herschel-SPIRE map of the cosmic infrared background. We compare this template to the B modes measured directly by SPTpol, finding a non-zero correlation at 7.7 sigma significance. The correlation has an amplitude and scale-dependence consistent with theoretical expectations, is robust with respect to analysis choices, and constitutes the first measurement of a powerful cosmological observable., Comment: Two additional null tests, matches version published in PRL

SPT-CLJ2040-4451 -- spectroscopically confirmed at z = 1.478 -- is the highest redshift galaxy cluster yet discovered via the Sunyaev-Zel'dovich effect. SPT-CLJ2040-4451 was a candidate galaxy cluster identified in the first 720 deg^2 of the South Pole Telescope Sunyaev-Zel'dovich (SPT-SZ) survey, and confirmed in follow-up imaging and spectroscopy. From multi-object spectroscopy with Magellan-I/Baade+IMACS we measure spectroscopic redshifts for 15 cluster member galaxies, all of which have strong [O II] 3727 emission. SPT-CLJ2040-4451 has an SZ-measured mass of M_500,SZ = 3.2 +/- 0.8 X 10^14 M_Sun/h_70, corresponding to M_200,SZ = 5.8 +/- 1.4 X 10^14 M_Sun/h_70. The velocity dispersion measured entirely from blue star forming members is sigma_v = 1500 +/- 520 km/s. The prevalence of star forming cluster members (galaxies with > 1.5 M_Sun/yr) implies that this massive, high-redshift cluster is experiencing a phase of active star formation, and supports recent results showing a marked increase in star formation occurring in galaxy clusters at z >1.4. We also compute the probability of finding a cluster as rare as this in the SPT-SZ survey to be >99%, indicating that its discovery is not in tension with the concordance Lambda-CDM cosmological model., Comment: 14 pages, 8 figures, 4 tables, Accepted to ApJ

We measure the cross-power spectrum of the projected mass density as traced by the convergence of the cosmic microwave background lensing field from the South Pole Telescope (SPT) and a sample of Type 1 and 2 (unobscured and obscured) quasars at z~1 selected with the Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer, over 2500 deg^2. The cross-power spectrum is detected at ~7-sigma, and we measure a linear bias b=1.67+/-0.24, consistent with clustering analyses. Using an independent lensing map, derived from Planck observations, to measure the cross-spectrum, we find excellent agreement with the SPT analysis. The bias of the combined sample of Type 1 and 2 quasars determined in this work is similar to that previously determined for Type 1 quasars alone; we conclude that that obscured and unobscured quasars must trace the matter field in a similar way. This result has implications for our understanding of quasar unification and evolution schemes., Comment: replaced with version accepted for publication in the Astrophysical Journal Letters, ApJ, 776, L41

We present a point source catalog from 771 square degrees of the South Pole Telescope Sunyaev Zel'dovich (SPT-SZ) survey at 95, 150, and 220 GHz. We detect 1545 sources above 4.5 sigma significance in at least one band. Based on their relative brightness between survey bands, we classify the sources into two populations, one dominated by synchrotron emission from active galactic nuclei, and one dominated by thermal emission from dust-enshrouded star-forming galaxies. We find 1238 synchrotron and 307 dusty sources. We cross-match all sources against external catalogs and find 189 unidentified synchrotron sources and 189 unidentified dusty sources. The dusty sources without counterparts are good candidates for high-redshift, strongly lensed submillimeter galaxies. We derive number counts for each population from 1 Jy down to roughly 9, 5, and 11 mJy at 95, 150, and 220 GHz. We compare these counts with galaxy population models and find that none of the models we consider for either population provide a good fit to the measured counts in all three bands. The disparities imply that these measurements will be an important input to the next generation of millimeter-wave extragalactic source population models., Comment: 23 pages, 8 figures, submitted to ApJ

We present first results on the cooling properties derived from Chandra X-ray observations of 83 high-redshift (0.3 < z < 1.2) massive galaxy clusters selected by their Sunyaev-Zel'dovich signature in the South Pole Telescope data. We measure each cluster's central cooling time, central entropy, and mass deposition rate, and compare to local cluster samples. We find no significant evolution from z~0 to z~1 in the distribution of these properties, suggesting that cooling in cluster cores is stable over long periods of time. We also find that the average cool core entropy profile in the inner ~100 kpc has not changed dramatically since z ~ 1, implying that feedback must be providing nearly constant energy injection to maintain the observed "entropy floor" at ~10 keV cm^2. While the cooling properties appear roughly constant over long periods of time, we observe strong evolution in the gas density profile, with the normalized central density (rho_0/rho_crit) increasing by an order of magnitude from z ~ 1 to z ~ 0. When using metrics defined by the inner surface brightness profile of clusters, we find an apparent lack of classical, cuspy, cool-core clusters at z > 0.75, consistent with earlier reports for clusters at z > 0.5 using similar definitions. Our measurements indicate that cool cores have been steadily growing over the 8 Gyr spanned by our sample, consistent with a constant, ~150 Msun/yr cooling flow that is unable to cool below entropies of 10 keV cm^2 and, instead, accumulates in the cluster center. We estimate that cool cores began to assemble in these massive systems at z ~ 1, which represents the first constraints on the onset of cooling in galaxy cluster cores. We investigate several potential biases which could conspire to mimic this cool core evolution and are unable to find a bias that has a similar redshift dependence and a substantial amplitude., Comment: 17 pages with 15 figures, plus appendix. Published in ApJ

We use a temperature map of the cosmic microwave background (CMB) obtained using the South Pole Telescope at 150 GHz to construct a map of the gravitational convergence to z ~ 1100, revealing the fluctuations in the projected mass density. This map shows individual features that are significant at the ~ 4 sigma level, providing the first image of CMB lensing convergence. We cross-correlate this map with Herschel/SPIRE maps covering 90 square degrees at wavelengths of 500, 350, and 250 microns. We show that these submillimeter-wavelength (submm) maps are strongly correlated with the lensing convergence map, with detection significances in each of the three submm bands ranging from 6.7 to 8.8 sigma. We fit the measurement of the cross power spectrum assuming a simple constant bias model and infer bias factors of b=1.3-1.8, with a statistical uncertainty of 15%, depending on the assumed model for the redshift distribution of the dusty galaxies that are contributing to the Herschel/SPIRE maps., Comment: 5 pages, 3 figures, to be submitted to ApJL

We present a measurement of the angular bispectrum of the millimeter-wave sky in observing bands centered at roughly 95, 150, and 220 GHz, on angular scales of $1^\prime \lesssim \theta \lesssim 10^\prime$ (multipole number $1000 \lesssim l \lesssim 10000$). At these frequencies and angular scales, the main contributions to the bispectrum are expected to be the thermal Sunyaev-Zel'dovich (tSZ) effect and emission from extragalactic sources, predominantly dusty, star-forming galaxies (DSFGs) and active galactic nuclei. We measure the bispectrum in 800 $\mathrm{deg}^2$ of three-band South Pole Telescope data, and we use a multi-frequency fitting procedure to separate the bispectrum of the tSZ effect from the extragalactic source contribution. We simultaneously detect the bispectrum of the tSZ effect at $>$10$\sigma$, the unclustered component of the extragalactic source bispectrum at $>$5$\sigma$ in each frequency band, and the bispectrum due to the clustering of DSFGs---i.e., the clustered cosmic infrared background (CIB) bispectrum---at $>$5$\sigma$. This is the first reported detection of the clustered CIB bispectrum. We use the measured tSZ bispectrum amplitude, compared to model predictions, to constrain the normalization of the matter power spectrum to be $\sigma_8 = 0.787 \pm 0.031$ and to predict the amplitude of the tSZ power spectrum at $l = 3000$. This prediction improves our ability to separate the thermal and kinematic contributions to the total SZ power spectrum. The addition of bispectrum data improves our constraint on the tSZ power spectrum amplitude by a factor of two compared to power spectrum measurements alone and demonstrates a preference for a nonzero kinematic SZ (kSZ) power spectrum, with a derived constraint on the kSZ amplitude at $l=3000$ of A_kSZ $ = 2.9 \pm 1.6 \ \mu$K$^2$, or A_kSZ $ = 2.6 \pm 1.8 \ \mu$K$^2$ if the default A_kSZ > 0 prior is removed., Comment: 23 emulateapj pages, 4 figures, revised to match published version. Data products available at http://pole.uchicago.edu/public/data/crawford13

Using the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA), we have conducted a blind redshift survey in the 3 mm atmospheric transmission window for 26 strongly lensd dusty star-forming galaxies (DSFGs) selected with the South Pole Telescope (SPT). The sources were selected to have S_1.4mm>20 mJy and a dust-like spectrum and, to remove low-z sources, not have bright radio (S_843MHz<6mJy) or far-infrared counterparts (S_100um<1 Jy, S_60um<200mJy). We robustly detect 44 line features in our survey, which we identify as redshifted emission lines of 12CO, 13CO, [CI], H2O, and H2O+. We find one or more spectral features in 23 sources yielding a ~90% detection rate for this survey; in 12 of these sources we detect multiple lines, while in 11 sources we detect only a single line. For the sources with only one detected line, we break the redshift degeneracy with additional spectroscopic observations if available, or infer the most likely line identification based on photometric data. This yields secure redshifts for ~70% of the sample. The three sources with no lines detected are tentatively placed in the redshift desert between 1.7=3.5. This finding is in contrast to the redshift distribution of radio-identified DSFGs, which have a significantly lower mean redshift of =2.3 and for which only 10-15% of the population is expected to be at z>3. We discuss the effect of gravitational lensing on the redshift distribution and compare our measured redshift distribution to that of models in the literature., Comment: Accepted for publication in the Astrophysical Journal

We present Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) 860 micrometer imaging of four high-redshift (z=2.8-5.7) dusty sources that were detected using the South Pole Telescope (SPT) at 1.4 mm and are not seen in existing radio to far-infrared catalogs. At 1.5 arcsec resolution, the ALMA data reveal multiple images of each submillimeter source, separated by 1-3 arcsec, consistent with strong lensing by intervening galaxies visible in near-IR imaging of these sources. We describe a gravitational lens modeling procedure that operates on the measured visibilities and incorporates self-calibration-like antenna phase corrections as part of the model optimization, which we use to interpret the source structure. Lens models indicate that SPT0346-52, located at z=5.7, is one of the most luminous and intensely star-forming sources in the universe with a lensing corrected FIR luminosity of 3.7 X 10^13 L_sun and star formation surface density of 4200 M_sun yr^-1 kpc^-2. We find magnification factors of 5 to 22, with lens Einstein radii of 1.1-2.0 arcsec and Einstein enclosed masses of 1.6-7.2x10^11 M_sun. These observations confirm the lensing origin of these objects, allow us to measure the their intrinsic sizes and luminosities, and demonstrate the important role that ALMA will play in the interpretation of lensed submillimeter sources., Comment: Accepted for publication in the Astrophysics Journal

In the past decade, our understanding of galaxy evolution has been revolutionized by the discovery that luminous, dusty, starburst galaxies were 1,000 times more abundant in the early Universe than at present. It has, however, been difficult to measure the complete redshift 2 distribution of these objects, especially at the highest redshifts (z > 4). Here we report a redshift survey at a wavelength of three millimeters, targeting carbon monoxide line emission from the star-forming molecular gas in the direction of extraordinarily bright millimetrewave-selected sources. High-resolution imaging demonstrates that these sources are strongly gravitationally lensed by foreground galaxies. We detect spectral lines in 23 out of 26 sources and multiple lines in 12 of those 23 sources, from which we obtain robust, unambiguous redshifts. At least 10 of the sources are found to lie at z > 4, indicating that the fraction of dusty starburst galaxies at high redshifts is greater than previously thought. Models of lens geometries in the sample indicate that the background objects are ultra-luminous infrared galaxies, powered by extreme bursts of star formation., Comment: Accepted for publication in Nature. Under press embargo till 18:00 GMT on Wednesday March 13th

We explore extensions to the $\Lambda$CDM cosmology using measurements of the cosmic microwave background (CMB) from the recent SPT-SZ survey, along with data from WMAP7 and measurements of $H_0$ and BAO. We check for consistency within $\Lambda$CDM between these datasets, and find some tension. The CMB alone gives weak support to physics beyond $\Lambda$CDM, due to a slight trend relative to $\Lambda$CDM of decreasing power towards smaller angular scales. While it may be due to statistical fluctuation, this trend could also be explained by several extensions. We consider running index (nrun), as well as two extensions that modify the damping tail power (the primordial helium abundance $Y_p$ and the effective number of neutrino species $N_{\rm eff}$) and one that modifies the large-scale power due to the ISW effect (the sum of neutrino masses $\sum m_\nu$). These extensions have similar observational consequences and are partially degenerate when considered simultaneously. Of the 6 one-parameter extensions considered, we find CMB to have the largest preference for nrun with -0.0460 from CMB+BAO+$H_0$+$\rm{SPT_{CL}}$. The median value is $(0.32\pm0.11)$ eV, a factor of six above the lower bound set by neutrino oscillation observations. ... [abridged], Comment: 27 pages, 20 figures. Replaced with version accepted by ApJ

We present a measurement of the cosmic microwave background (CMB) temperature power spectrum using data from the recently completed South Pole Telescope Sunyaev-Zel'dovich (SPT-SZ) survey. This measurement is made from observations of 2540 deg$^2$ of sky with arcminute resolution at $150\,$GHz, and improves upon previous measurements using the SPT by tripling the sky area. We report CMB temperature anisotropy power over the multipole range $650<\ell<3000$. We fit the SPT bandpowers, combined with the seven-year Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe (WMAP7) data, with a six-parameter LCDM cosmological model and find that the two datasets are consistent and well fit by the model. Adding SPT measurements significantly improves LCDM parameter constraints; in particular, the constraint on $\theta_s$ tightens by a factor of 2.7. The impact of gravitational lensing is detected at $8.1\, \sigma$, the most significant detection to date. This sensitivity of the SPT+WMAP7 data to lensing by large-scale structure at low redshifts allows us to constrain the mean curvature of the observable universe with CMB data alone to be $\Omega_k=-0.003^{+0.014}_{-0.018}$. Using the SPT+WMAP7 data, we measure the spectral index of scalar fluctuations to be $n_s=0.9623 \pm 0.0097$ in the LCDM model, a $3.9\,\sigma$ preference for a scale-dependent spectrum with $n_s<1$. The SPT measurement of the CMB damping tail helps break the degeneracy that exists between the tensor-to-scalar ratio $r$ and $n_s$ in large-scale CMB measurements, leading to an upper limit of $r<0.18$ (95%,C.L.) in the LCDM+$r$ model. Adding low-redshift measurements of the Hubble constant ($H_0$) and the baryon acoustic oscillation (BAO) feature to the SPT+WMAP7 data leads to further improvements. The combination of SPT+WMAP7+$H_0$+BAO constrains $n_s=0.9538 \pm 0.0081$ in the LCDM model, a $5.7\,\sigma$ detection of $n_s < 1$, ... [abridged], Comment: 21 pages, 10 figures. Replaced with version accepted by ApJ. Data products are available at http://pole.uchicago.edu/public/data/story12/

The SPTpol camera is a two-color, polarization-sensitive bolometer receiver, and was installed on the 10 meter South Pole Telescope in January 2012. SPTpol is designed to study the faint polarization signals in the Cosmic Microwave Background, with two primary scientific goals. One is to constrain the tensor-to-scalar ratio of perturbations in the primordial plasma, and thus constrain the space of permissible inflationary models. The other is to measure the weak lensing effect of large-scale structure on CMB polarization, which can be used to constrain the sum of neutrino masses as well as other growth-related parameters. The SPTpol focal plane consists of seven 84-element monolithic arrays of 150 GHz pixels (588 total) and 180 individual 90 GHz single-pixel modules. In this paper we present the design and characterization of the 90 GHz modules.

We present the software system used to control and operate the South Pole Telescope. The South Pole Telescope is a 10-meter millimeter-wavelength telescope designed to measure anisotropies in the cosmic microwave background (CMB) at arcminute angular resolution. In the austral summer of 2011/12, the SPT was equipped with a new polarization-sensitive camera, which consists of 1536 transition-edge sensor bolometers. The bolometers are read out using 36 independent digital frequency multiplexing (\dfmux) readout boards, each with its own embedded processors. These autonomous boards control and read out data from the focal plane with on-board software and firmware. An overall control software system running on a separate control computer controls the \dfmux boards, the cryostat and all other aspects of telescope operation. This control software collects and monitors data in real-time, and stores the data to disk for transfer to the United States for analysis.

SPTpol is a dual-frequency polarization-sensitive camera that was deployed on the 10-meter South Pole Telescope in January 2012. SPTpol will measure the polarization anisotropy of the cosmic microwave background (CMB) on angular scales spanning an arcminute to several degrees. The polarization sensitivity of SPTpol will enable a detection of the CMB "B-mode" polarization from the detection of the gravitational lensing of the CMB by large scale structure, and a detection or improved upper limit on a primordial signal due to inflationary gravity waves. The two measurements can be used to constrain the sum of the neutrino masses and the energy scale of inflation. These science goals can be achieved through the polarization sensitivity of the SPTpol camera and careful control of systematics. The SPTpol camera consists of 768 pixels, each containing two transition-edge sensor (TES) bolometers coupled to orthogonal polarizations, and a total of 1536 bolometers. The pixels are sensitive to light in one of two frequency bands centered at 90 and 150 GHz, with 180 pixels at 90 GHz and 588 pixels at 150 GHz. The SPTpol design has several features designed to control polarization systematics, including: single-moded feedhorns with low cross-polarization, bolometer pairs well-matched to difference atmospheric signals, an improved ground shield design based on far-sidelobe measurements of the SPT, and a small beam to reduce temperature to polarization leakage. We present an overview of the SPTpol instrument design, project status, and science projections., Comment: 18 pages, 6 figures

The SPTpol camera is a dichroic polarimetric receiver at 90 and 150 GHz. Deployed in January 2012 on the South Pole Telescope (SPT), SPTpol is looking for faint polarization signals in the Cosmic Microwave Background (CMB). The camera consists of 180 individual Transition Edge Sensor (TES) polarimeters at 90 GHz and seven 84-polarimeter camera modules (a total of 588 polarimeters) at 150 GHz. We present the design, dark characterization, and in-lab optical properties of the 150 GHz camera modules. The modules consist of photolithographed arrays of TES polarimeters coupled to silicon platelet arrays of corrugated feedhorns, both of which are fabricated at NIST-Boulder. In addition to mounting hardware and RF shielding, each module also contains a set of passive readout electronics for digital frequency-domain multiplexing. A single module, therefore, is fully functional as a miniature focal plane and can be tested independently. Across the modules tested before deployment, the detectors average a critical temperature of 478 mK, normal resistance R_N of 1.2 Ohm, unloaded saturation power of 22.5 pW, (detector-only) optical efficiency of ~ 90%, and have electrothermal time constants < 1 ms in transition., Comment: 15 pages, 11 figures

In January 2012, the 10m South Pole Telescope (SPT) was equipped with a polarization-sensitive camera, SPTpol, in order to measure the polarization anisotropy of the cosmic microwave background (CMB). Measurements of the polarization of the CMB at small angular scales (~several arcminutes) can detect the gravitational lensing of the CMB by large scale structure and constrain the sum of the neutrino masses. At large angular scales (~few degrees) CMB measurements can constrain the energy scale of Inflation. SPTpol is a two-color mm-wave camera that consists of 180 polarimeters at 90 GHz and 588 polarimeters at 150 GHz, with each polarimeter consisting of a dual transition edge sensor (TES) bolometers. The full complement of 150 GHz detectors consists of 7 arrays of 84 ortho-mode transducers (OMTs) that are stripline coupled to two TES detectors per OMT, developed by the TRUCE collaboration and fabricated at NIST. Each 90 GHz pixel consists of two antenna-coupled absorbers coupled to two TES detectors, developed with Argonne National Labs. The 1536 total detectors are read out with digital frequency-domain multiplexing (DfMUX). The SPTpol deployment represents the first on-sky tests of both of these detector technologies, and is one of the first deployed instruments using DfMUX readout technology. We present the details of the design, commissioning, deployment, on-sky optical characterization and detector performance of the complete SPTpol focal plane., Comment: 15 pages, 6 figures. Conference: SPIE Astronomical Telescopes and Instrumentation 2012

We report the first investigation of cool-core properties of galaxy clusters selected via their Sunyaev--Zel'dovich (SZ) effect. We use 13 galaxy clusters uniformly selected from 178 deg^2 observed with the South Pole Telescope (SPT) and followed up by the Chandra X-ray Observatory. They form an approximately mass-limited sample (> 3 x 10^14 M_sun h^-1_70) spanning redshifts 0.3 < z < 1.1. Using previously published X-ray-selected cluster samples, we compare two proxies of cool-core strength: surface brightness concentration (cSB) and cuspiness ({\alpha}). We find that cSB is better constrained. We measure cSB for the SPT sample and find several new z > 0.5 cool-core clusters, including two strong cool cores. This rules out the hypothesis that there are no z > 0.5 clusters that qualify as strong cool cores at the 5.4{\sigma} level. The fraction of strong cool-core clusters in the SPT sample in this redshift regime is between 7% and 56% (95% confidence). Although the SPT selection function is significantly different from the X-ray samples, the high-z cSB distribution for the SPT sample is statistically consistent with that of X-ray-selected samples at both low and high redshifts. The cool-core strength is inversely correlated with the offset between the brightest cluster galaxy and the X-ray centroid, providing evidence that the dynamical state affects the cool-core strength of the cluster. Larger SZ-selected samples will be crucial in understanding the evolution of cluster cool cores over cosmic time., Comment: 9 pages, 5 figures. Version as published in December 20th, 2012 issue of ApJ

In the cores of some galaxy clusters the hot intracluster plasma is dense enough that it should cool radiatively in the cluster's lifetime, leading to continuous "cooling flows" of gas sinking towards the cluster center, yet no such cooling flow has been observed. The low observed star formation rates and cool gas masses for these "cool core" clusters suggest that much of the cooling must be offset by astrophysical feedback to prevent the formation of a runaway cooling flow. Here we report X-ray, optical, and infrared observations of the galaxy cluster SPT-CLJ2344-4243 at z = 0.596. These observations reveal an exceptionally luminous (L_2-10 keV = 8.2 x 10^45 erg/s) galaxy cluster which hosts an extremely strong cooling flow (dM/dt = 3820 +/- 530 Msun/yr). Further, the central galaxy in this cluster appears to be experiencing a massive starburst (740 +/- 160 Msun/yr), which suggests that the feedback source responsible for preventing runaway cooling in nearby cool core clusters may not yet be fully established in SPT-CLJ2344-4243. This large star formation rate implies that a significant fraction of the stars in the central galaxy of this cluster may form via accretion of the intracluster medium, rather than the current picture of central galaxies assembling entirely via mergers., Comment: 11 pages, 3 figures, 1 table. Supplemental material contains 15 additional pages. Published in Nature

We present the results of the ground- and space-based optical and near-infrared (NIR) follow-up of 224 galaxy cluster candidates detected with the Sunyaev-Zel'dovich (SZ) effect in the 720 deg^2 of the South Pole Telescope (SPT) survey completed in the 2008 and 2009 observing seasons. We use the optical/NIR data to establish whether each candidate is associated with an overdensity of galaxies and to estimate the cluster redshift. Most photometric redshifts are derived through a combination of three different cluster redshift estimators using red-sequence galaxies, resulting in an accuracy of \Delta z/(1+z)=0.017, determined through comparison with a subsample of 57 clusters for which we have spectroscopic redshifts. We successfully measure redshifts for 158 systems and present redshift lower limits for the remaining candidates. The redshift distribution of the confirmed clusters extends to z=1.35 with a median of z_{med}=0.57. Approximately 18% of the sample with measured redshifts lies at z>0.8. We estimate a lower limit to the purity of this SPT SZ-selected sample by assuming that all unconfirmed clusters are noise fluctuations in the SPT data. We show that the cumulative purity at detection significance \xi>5 (\xi>4.5) is >= 95 (>= 70%). We present the red brightest cluster galaxy (rBCG) positions for the sample and examine the offsets between the SPT candidate position and the rBCG. The radial distribution of offsets is similar to that seen in X-ray-selected cluster samples, providing no evidence that SZ-selected cluster samples include a different fraction of recent mergers than X-ray-selected cluster samples., Comment: 22 pages, 7 figures, 1 multi-page table at the end of the article

We present APEX SABOCA 350micron and LABOCA 870micron observations of 11 representative examples of the rare, extremely bright (S_1.4mm > 15mJy), dust-dominated millimeter-selected galaxies recently discovered by the South Pole Telescope (SPT). All 11 sources are robustly detected with LABOCA with 40 < S_870micron < 130mJy, approximately an order of magnitude higher than the canonical submillimeter galaxy (SMG) population. Six of the sources are also detected by SABOCA at >3sigma, with the detections or upper limits providing a key constraint on the shape of the spectral energy distribution (SED) near its peak. We model the SEDs of these galaxies using a simple modified blackbody and perform the same analysis on samples of SMGs of known redshift from the literature. These calibration samples inform the distribution of dust temperature for similar SMG populations, and this dust temperature prior allows us to derive photometric redshift estimates and far infrared luminosities for the sources. We find a median redshift of = 3.0, higher than the = 2.2 inferred for the normal SMG population. We also derive the apparent size of the sources from the temperature and apparent luminosity, finding them to appear larger than our unlensed calibration sample, which supports the idea that these sources are gravitationally magnified by massive structures along the line of sight., Comment: (15 pages, 6 color figures; accepted for publication in ApJ)

The galaxy cluster SPT-CL J0205-5829 currently has the highest spectroscopically-confirmed redshift, z=1.322, in the South Pole Telescope Sunyaev-Zel'dovich (SPT-SZ) survey. XMM-Newton observations measure a core-excluded temperature of Tx=8.7keV producing a mass estimate that is consistent with the Sunyaev-Zel'dovich derived mass. The combined SZ and X-ray mass estimate of M500=(4.9+/-0.8)e14 h_{70}^{-1} Msun makes it the most massive known SZ-selected galaxy cluster at z>1.2 and the second most massive at z>1. Using optical and infrared observations, we find that the brightest galaxies in SPT-CL J0205-5829 are already well evolved by the time the universe was <5 Gyr old, with stellar population ages >3 Gyr, and low rates of star formation (<0.5Msun/yr). We find that, despite the high redshift and mass, the existence of SPT-CL J0205-5829 is not surprising given a flat LambdaCDM cosmology with Gaussian initial perturbations. The a priori chance of finding a cluster of similar rarity (or rarer) in a survey the size of the 2500 deg^2 SPT-SZ survey is 69%., Comment: 11 pages, 5 figures, submitted to ApJ

We use weak gravitational lensing to measure the masses of five galaxy clusters selected from the South Pole Telescope (SPT) survey, with the primary goal of comparing these with the SPT Sunyaev--Zel'dovich (SZ) and X-ray based mass estimates. The clusters span redshifts 0.28 < z < 0.43 and have masses M_500 > 2 x 10^14 h^-1 M_sun, and three of the five clusters were discovered by the SPT survey. We observed the clusters in the g'r'i' passbands with the Megacam imager on the Magellan Clay 6.5m telescope. We measure a mean ratio of weak lensing (WL) aperture masses to inferred aperture masses from the SZ data, both within an aperture of R_500,SZ derived from the SZ mass, of 1.04 +/- 0.18. We measure a mean ratio of spherical WL masses evaluated at R_500,SZ to spherical SZ masses of 1.07 +/- 0.18, and a mean ratio of spherical WL masses evaluated at R_500,WL to spherical SZ masses of 1.10 +/- 0.24. We explore potential sources of systematic error in the mass comparisons and conclude that all are subdominant to the statistical uncertainty, with dominant terms being cluster concentration uncertainty and N-body simulation calibration bias. Expanding the sample of SPT clusters with WL observations has the potential to significantly improve the SPT cluster mass calibration and the resulting cosmological constraints from the SPT cluster survey. These are the first WL detections using Megacam on the Magellan Clay telescope., Comment: Main body: 18 pages, 7 figures, 6 tables. Appendix: 6 pages, 10 figures. Accepted by ApJ. New version incorporates changes from accepted article

We present a catalog of 224 galaxy cluster candidates, selected through their Sunyaev-Zel'dovich (SZ) effect signature in the first 720 deg2 of the South Pole Telescope (SPT) survey. This area was mapped with the SPT in the 2008 and 2009 austral winters to a depth of 18 uK-arcmin at 150 GHz; 550 deg2 of it was also mapped to 44 uK-arcmin at 95 GHz. Based on optical imaging of all candidates and near-infrared imaging of the majority of candidates, we have found optical and/or infrared counterparts for 158 clusters. Of these, 135 were first identified as clusters in SPT data, including 117 new discoveries reported in this work. This catalog triples the number of confirmed galaxy clusters discovered through the SZ effect. We report photometrically derived (and in some cases spectroscopic) redshifts for confirmed clusters and redshift lower limits for the remaining candidates. The catalog extends to high redshift with a median redshift of z = 0.55 and maximum redshift of z = 1.37. Based on simulations, we expect the catalog to be nearly 100% complete above M500 ~ 5e14 Msun h_{70}^-1 at z > 0.6. There are 121 candidates detected at signal-to-noise greater than five, at which the catalog purity is measured to be 95%. From this high-purity subsample, we exclude the z < 0.3 clusters and use the remaining 100 candidates to improve cosmological constraints following the method presented by Benson et al., 2011. Adding the cluster data to CMB+BAO+H0 data leads to a preference for non-zero neutrino masses while only slightly reducing the upper limit on the sum of neutrino masses to sum mnu < 0.38 eV (95% CL). For a spatially flat wCDM cosmological model, the addition of this catalog to the CMB+BAO+H0+SNe results yields sigma8=0.807+-0.027 and w = -1.010+-0.058, improving the constraints on these parameters by a factor of 1.4 and 1.3, respectively. [abbrev], Comment: 22 pages, 7 figures, submitted to ApJ

We compare cosmic microwave background lensing convergence maps derived from South Pole Telescope (SPT) data with galaxy survey data from the Blanco Cosmology Survey, the Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer, and a new large Spitzer/IRAC field designed to overlap with the SPT survey. Using optical and infrared catalogs covering between 17 and 68 square degrees of sky, we detect correlation between the SPT convergence maps and each of the galaxy density maps at >4 sigma, with zero cross-correlation robustly ruled out in all cases. The amplitude and shape of the cross-power spectra are in good agreement with theoretical expectations and the measured galaxy bias is consistent with previous work. The detections reported here utilize a small fraction of the full 2500 square degree SPT survey data and serve as both a proof of principle of the technique and an illustration of the potential of this emerging cosmological probe.

We use South Pole Telescope data from 2008 and 2009 to detect the non-Gaussian signature in the cosmic microwave background (CMB) produced by gravitational lensing and to measure the power spectrum of the projected gravitational potential. We constrain the ratio of the measured amplitude of the lensing signal to that expected in a fiducial LCDM cosmological model to be 0.86 +/- 0.16, with no lensing disfavored at 6.3 sigma. Marginalizing over LCDM cosmological models allowed by the WMAP7 results in a measurement of A_lens=0.90+/-0.19, indicating that the amplitude of matter fluctuations over the redshift range 0.5 <~ z <~ 5 probed by CMB lensing is in good agreement with predictions. We present the results of several consistency checks. These include a clear detection of the lensing signature in CMB maps filtered to have no overlap in Fourier space, as well as a "curl" diagnostic that is consistent with the signal expected for LCDM. We perform a detailed study of bias in the measurement due to noise, foregrounds, and other effects and determine that these contributions are relatively small compared to the statistical uncertainty in the measurement. We combine this lensing measurement with results from WMAP7 to improve constraints on cosmological parameters when compared to those from WMAP7 alone: we find a factor of 3.9 improvement in the measurement of the spatial curvature of the Universe, Omega_k=-0.0014+/-0.0172; a 10% improvement in the amplitude of matter fluctuations within LCDM, sigma_8=0.810+/ 0.026; and a 5% improvement in the dark energy equation of state, w=-1.04+/-0.40. When compared with the measurement of w provided by the combination of WMAP7 and external constraints on the Hubble parameter, the addition of the lensing data improve the measurement of w by 15% to give w=-1.087+/-0.096., Comment: 20 pages, 12 figures, to be submitted to ApJ

We use measurements from the South Pole Telescope (SPT) Sunyaev Zel'dovich (SZ) cluster survey in combination with X-ray measurements to constrain cosmological parameters. We present a statistical method that fits for the scaling relations of the SZ and X-ray cluster observables with mass while jointly fitting for cosmology. The method is generalizable to multiple cluster observables, and self-consistently accounts for the effects of the cluster selection and uncertainties in cluster mass calibration on the derived cosmological constraints. We apply this method to a data set consisting of an SZ-selected catalog of 18 galaxy clusters at z > 0.3 from the first 178 deg2 of the 2500 deg2 SPT-SZ survey, with 14 clusters having X-ray observations from either Chandra or XMM. Assuming a spatially flat LCDM cosmological model, we find the SPT cluster sample constrain sigma_8 (Omega_m/0.25)^0.30 = 0.785 +- 0.037. In combination with measurements of the CMB power spectrum from the SPT and the seven-year WMAP data, the SPT cluster sample constrain sigma_8 = 0.795 +- 0.016 and Omega_m = 0.255 +- 0.016, a factor of 1.5 improvement on each parameter over the CMB data alone. We consider several extensions beyond the LCDM model by including the following as free parameters: the dark energy equation of state (w), the sum of the neutrino masses (sum mnu), the effective number of relativistic species (Neff), and a primordial non-Gaussianity (fNL). We find that adding the SPT cluster data significantly improves the constraints on w and sum mnu beyond those found when using measurements of the CMB, supernovae, baryon acoustic oscillations, and the Hubble constant. Considering each extension independently, we best constrain w=-0.973 +- 0.063 and the sum of neutrino masses sum mnu < 0.28 eV at 95% confidence, a factor of 1.25 and 1.4 improvement, respectively, over the constraints without clusters. [abbrev.], Comment: 21 pages, 8 figures, submitted to ApJ

A technological milestone for experiments employing Transition Edge Sensor (TES) bolometers operating at sub-kelvin temperature is the deployment of detector arrays with 100s--1000s of bolometers. One key technology for such arrays is readout multiplexing: the ability to read out many sensors simultaneously on the same set of wires. This paper describes a frequency-domain multiplexed readout system which has been developed for and deployed on the APEX-SZ and South Pole Telescope millimeter wavelength receivers. In this system, the detector array is divided into modules of seven detectors, and each bolometer within the module is biased with a unique ~MHz sinusoidal carrier such that the individual bolometer signals are well separated in frequency space. The currents from all bolometers in a module are summed together and pre-amplified with Superconducting Quantum Interference Devices (SQUIDs) operating at 4 K. Room-temperature electronics demodulate the carriers to recover the bolometer signals, which are digitized separately and stored to disk. This readout system contributes little noise relative to the detectors themselves, is remarkably insensitive to unwanted microphonic excitations, and provides a technology pathway to multiplexing larger numbers of sensors., Comment: 28 pages, 17 figures, accepted to Review of Scientific Instruments. Resubmitted revised version to arxiv July 2012 including very minor changes to address reviewer's comments

The South Pole Telescope (SPT) has nearly completed a 2500-square-degree survey of the southern sky in three frequency bands. Here we present the first public release of SPT maps and associated data products. We present arcminute-resolution maps at 150 GHz and 220 GHz of an approximately 95-square-degree field centered at R.A. 82.7 degrees, decl. -55 degrees. The field was observed to a depth of approximately 17 micro-K arcmin at 150 GHz and 41 micro-K arcmin at 220 GHz during the 2008 austral winter season. Two variations on map filtering and map projection are presented, one tailored for producing catalogs of galaxy clusters detected through their Sunyaev-Zel'dovich effect signature and one tailored for producing catalogs of emissive sources. We describe the data processing pipeline, and we present instrument response functions, filter transfer functions, and map noise properties. All data products described in this paper are available for download at http://pole.uchicago.edu/public/data/maps/ra5h30dec-55 and from the NASA Legacy Archive for Microwave Background Data Analysis server. This is the first step in the eventual release of data from the full 2500-square-degree SPT survey., Comment: 22 pages, 12 figures, matches published version

The epoch of reionization is a milestone of cosmological structure formation, marking the birth of the first objects massive enough to yield large numbers of ionizing photons. The mechanism and timescale of reionization remain largely unknown. Measurements of the CMB Doppler effect from ionizing bubbles embedded in large-scale velocity streams (the patchy kinetic Sunyaev-Zel'dovich effect) can constrain the duration of reionization. When combined with large-scale CMB polarization measurements, the evolution of the ionized fraction can be inferred. Using new multi-frequency data from the South Pole Telescope (SPT), we show that the ionized fraction evolved relatively rapidly. For our basic foreground model, we find the kinetic Sunyaev-Zel'dovich power sourced by reionization at l=3000 to be <= 2.1 micro K^2 at 95% CL. Using reionization simulations, we translate this to a limit on the duration of reionization of Delta z <= 4.4 (95% CL). We find that this constraint depends on assumptions about the angular correlation between the thermal Sunyaev-Zel'dovich power and the cosmic infrared background (CIB). Introducing the degree of correlation as a free parameter, we find that the limits on kSZ power weaken to <= 4.9 micro K^2, implying Delta z <= 7.9 (95% CL). We combine the SPT constraint on the duration of reionization with the WMAP7 measurement of the integrated optical depth to probe the cosmic ionization history. We find that reionization ended with 95% CL at z > 7.2 under the assumption of no tSZ-CIB correlation, and z>5.8 when correlations are allowed. Improved constraints from the full SPT data set in conjunction with upcoming Herschel and Planck data should detect extended reionization at >95% CL provided Delta z >= 4. (abbreviated), Comment: 16 pages, 13 figures, version accepted by ApJ, improved forecast of Herschel-SPT reionization constraints

We present the first three-frequency South Pole Telescope (SPT) cosmic microwave background (CMB) power spectra. The band powers presented here cover angular scales 2000 < ell < 9400 in frequency bands centered at 95, 150, and 220 GHz. At these frequencies and angular scales, a combination of the primary CMB anisotropy, thermal and kinetic Sunyaev-Zel'dovich (SZ) effects, radio galaxies, and cosmic infrared background (CIB) contributes to the signal. We combine Planck and SPT data at 220 GHz to constrain the amplitude and shape of the CIB power spectrum and find strong evidence for non-linear clustering. We explore the SZ results using a variety of cosmological models for the CMB and CIB anisotropies and find them to be robust with one exception: allowing for spatial correlations between the thermal SZ effect and CIB significantly degrades the SZ constraints. Neglecting this potential correlation, we find the thermal SZ power at 150 GHz and ell = 3000 to be 3.65 +/- 0.69 muK^2, and set an upper limit on the kinetic SZ power to be less than 2.8 muK^2 at 95% confidence. When a correlation between the thermal SZ and CIB is allowed, we constrain a linear combination of thermal and kinetic SZ power: D_{3000}^{tSZ} + 0.5 D_{3000}^{kSZ} = 4.60 +/- 0.63 muK^2, consistent with earlier measurements. We use the measured thermal SZ power and an analytic, thermal SZ model calibrated with simulations to determine sigma8 = 0.807 +/- 0.016. Modeling uncertainties involving the astrophysics of the intracluster medium rather than the statistical uncertainty in the measured band powers are the dominant source of uncertainty on sigma8 . We also place an upper limit on the kinetic SZ power produced by patchy reionization; a companion paper uses these limits to constrain the reionization history of the Universe., Comment: 25 pages; 14 figures; Submitted to ApJ (Updated to reflect referee comments)

We present a measurement of the angular power spectrum of the cosmic microwave background (CMB) using data from the South Pole Telescope (SPT). The data consist of 790 square degrees of sky observed at 150 GHz during 2008 and 2009. Here we present the power spectrum over the multipole range 650 < ell < 3000, where it is dominated by primary CMB anisotropy. We combine this power spectrum with the power spectra from the seven-year Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe (WMAP) data release to constrain cosmological models. We find that the SPT and WMAP data are consistent with each other and, when combined, are well fit by a spatially flat, LCDM cosmological model. The SPT+WMAP constraint on the spectral index of scalar fluctuations is ns = 0.9663 +/- 0.0112. We detect, at ~5-sigma significance, the effect of gravitational lensing on the CMB power spectrum, and find its amplitude to be consistent with the LCDM cosmological model. We explore a number of extensions beyond the LCDM model. Each extension is tested independently, although there are degeneracies between some of the extension parameters. We constrain the tensor-to-scalar ratio to be r < 0.21 (95% CL) and constrain the running of the scalar spectral index to be dns/dlnk = -0.024 +/- 0.013. We strongly detect the effects of primordial helium and neutrinos on the CMB; a model without helium is rejected at 7.7-sigma, while a model without neutrinos is rejected at 7.5-sigma. The primordial helium abundance is measured to be Yp = 0.296 +/- 0.030, and the effective number of relativistic species is measured to be Neff = 3.85 +/- 0.62. The constraints on these models are strengthened when the CMB data are combined with measurements of the Hubble constant and the baryon acoustic oscillation feature. Notable improvements include ns = 0.9668 +/- 0.0093, r < 0.17 (95% CL), and Neff = 3.86 +/- 0.42. The SPT+WMAP data show..., Comment: 23 pages, 13 figures. Replaced with version accepted by ApJ. Data products are available at http://pole.uchicago.edu/public/data/keisler11/index.html or http://lambda.gsfc.nasa.gov/product/spt/spt_spectra_2011_get.cfm

We present South Pole Telescope (SPT) observations of the five galaxy cluster candidates in the southern hemisphere which were reported as unconfirmed in the Planck Early Sunyaev-Zel'dovich (ESZ) sample. One cluster candidate, PLCKESZ G255.62-46.16, is located in the 2500-square-degree SPT SZ survey region and was reported previously as SPT-CL J0411-4819. For the remaining four candidates, which are located outside of the SPT SZ survey region, we performed short, dedicated SPT observations. Each of these four candidates was strongly detected in maps made from these observations, with signal-to-noise ratios ranging from 6.3 to 13.8. We have observed these four candidates on the Magellan-Baade telescope and used these data to estimate cluster redshifts from the red sequence. Resulting redshifts range from 0.24 to 0.46. We report measurements of Y_0.75', the integrated Comptonization within a 0.75' radius, for all five candidates. We also report X-ray luminosities calculated from ROSAT All-Sky Survey catalog counts, as well as optical and improved SZ coordinates for each candidate. The combination of SPT SZ measurements, optical red-sequence measurements, and X-ray luminosity estimates demonstrates that these five Planck ESZ cluster candidates do indeed correspond to real galaxy clusters with redshifts and observable properties consistent with the rest of the ESZ sample., Comment: 7 emulateapj pages, 4 figures, 1 table. Revised to match published version

The South Pole Telescope (SPT) is currently surveying 2500 deg^2 of the southern sky to detect massive galaxy clusters out to the epoch of their formation using the Sunyaev-Zel'dovich (SZ) effect. This paper presents a catalog of the 26 most significant SZ cluster detections in the full survey region. The catalog includes 14 clusters which have been previously identified and 12 that are new discoveries. These clusters were identified in fields observed to two differing noise depths: 1500 deg^2 at the final SPT survey depth of 18 uK-arcmin at 150 GHz, and 1000 deg^2 at a depth of 54 uK-arcmin. Clusters were selected on the basis of their SZ signal-to-noise ratio (S/N) in SPT maps, a quantity which has been demonstrated to correlate tightly with cluster mass. The S/N thresholds were chosen to achieve a comparable mass selection across survey fields of both depths. Cluster redshifts were obtained with optical and infrared imaging and spectroscopy from a variety of ground- and space-based facilities. The redshifts range from 0.098 \leq z \leq 1.132 with a median of z_med = 0.40. The measured SZ S/N and redshifts lead to unbiased mass estimates ranging from 9.8 \times 10^14 M_sun/h_70 \leq M_200(rho_mean) \leq 3.1 \times 10^15 M_sun/h_70. Based on the SZ mass estimates, we find that none of the clusters are individually in significant tension with the LambdaCDM cosmological model. We also test for evidence of non-Gaussianity based on the cluster sample and find the data show no preference for non-Gaussian perturbations., Comment: Main body: 6 tables, 5 figures, 15 pages. Appendix: 26 full-color images, 14 pages. Accepted by ApJ

Using the South Pole Telescope (SPT), we have discovered the most massive known galaxy cluster at z > 1, SPT-CL J2106-5844. In addition to producing a strong Sunyaev-Zel'dovich effect signal, this system is a luminous X-ray source and its numerous constituent galaxies display spatial and color clustering, all indicating the presence of a massive galaxy cluster. VLT and Magellan spectroscopy of 18 member galaxies shows that the cluster is at z = 1.132^+0.002_-0.003. Chandra observations obtained through a combined HRC-ACIS GTO program reveal an X-ray spectrum with an Fe K line redshifted by z = 1.18 +/- 0.03. These redshifts are consistent with galaxy colors in extensive optical, near-infrared, and mid-infrared imaging. SPT-CL J2106-5844 displays extreme X-ray properties for a cluster, having a core-excluded temperature of kT = 11.0^+2.6_-1.9 keV and a luminosity (within r_500) of L_X (0.5 - 2.0 keV) = (13.9 +/- 1.0) x 10^44 erg/s. The combined mass estimate from measurements of the Sunyaev-Zel'dovich effect and X-ray data is M_200 = (1.27 +/- 0.21) x 10^15 M_sun. The discovery of such a massive gravitationally collapsed system at high redshift provides an interesting laboratory for galaxy formation and evolution, and is a powerful probe of extreme perturbations of the primordial matter density field. We discuss the latter, determining that, under the assumption of LambdaCDM cosmology with only Gaussian perturbations, there is only a 7% chance of finding a galaxy cluster similar to SPT-CL J2106-5844 in the 2500 deg^2 SPT survey region, and that only one such galaxy cluster is expected in the entire sky., Comment: 10 pages, submitted to ApJ

We report measurements of the cosmic microwave background (CMB) power spectrum from the complete 2008 South Pole Telescope (SPT) data set. We analyze twice as much data as the first SPT power spectrum analysis, using an improved cosmological parameter estimator which fits multi-frequency models to the SPT 150 and $220\,$GHz bandpowers. We find an excellent fit to the measured bandpowers with a model that includes lensed primary CMB anisotropy, secondary thermal (tSZ) and kinetic (kSZ) Sunyaev-Zel'dovich anisotropies, unclustered synchrotron point sources, and clustered dusty point sources. In addition to measuring the power spectrum of dusty galaxies at high signal-to-noise, the data primarily constrain a linear combination of the kSZ and tSZ anisotropy contributions at $150\,$GHz and $\ell=3000$: $D^{tSZ}_{3000} + 0.5\,D^{kSZ}_{3000} = 4.5\pm 1.0 \,\mu{\rm K}^2$. The 95% confidence upper limits on secondary anisotropy power are $D^{tSZ}_{3000} < 5.3\,\mu{\rm K}^2$ and $D^{kSZ}_{3000} < 6.5\,\mu{\rm K}^2$. We also consider the potential correlation of dusty and tSZ sources, and find it incapable of relaxing the tSZ upper limit. These results increase the significance of the lower than expected tSZ amplitude previously determined from SPT power spectrum measurements. We find that models including non-thermal pressure support in groups and clusters predict tSZ power in better agreement with the SPT data. Combining the tSZ power measurement with primary CMB data halves the statistical uncertainty on $\sigma_8$. However, the preferred value of $\sigma_8$ varies significantly between tSZ models. Improved constraints on cosmological parameters from tSZ power spectrum measurements require continued progress in the modeling of the tSZ power., Comment: Minor additions in response to referee; results unchanged. 27 pages, 16 figures. Submitted to ApJ