Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®
- Institution
-
- Utah State University (26)
- Selected Works (19)
- Dartmouth College (15)
- University of Massachusetts Amherst (12)
- The University of San Francisco (7)
-
- University of New Mexico (7)
- City University of New York (CUNY) (5)
- Kennesaw State University (5)
- California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo (4)
- Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University (4)
- Georgia Southern University (4)
- Andrews University (3)
- Chapman University (3)
- Louisiana State University (3)
- Loyola University Chicago (3)
- Merrimack College (3)
- Old Dominion University (3)
- SelectedWorks (3)
- University of Richmond (3)
- Loyola Marymount University and Loyola Law School (2)
- University of Arkansas, Fayetteville (2)
- University of Nevada, Las Vegas (2)
- Bard College (1)
- Belmont University (1)
- Bowdoin College (1)
- DePaul University (1)
- Illinois Math and Science Academy (1)
- Liberty University (1)
- Marshall University (1)
- Purdue University (1)
- Keyword
-
- Cosmology (24)
- Gravitational waves (15)
- General Relativity (13)
- Physics (11)
- Black Holes (10)
-
- Dark matter (6)
- Orbital Dynamics (6)
- Astrophysics (5)
- Galaxies (5)
- General relativity (5)
- Gravity (5)
- Black holes (4)
- Early Universe (4)
- Einstein Field Equations (4)
- Gravitational lensing (4)
- High energy physics (4)
- Interferometers (4)
- LISA (4)
- Rainich Conditions (4)
- Space (4)
- Astronomy (3)
- Black hole physics (3)
- Computational Physics (3)
- Condensed matter (3)
- Cosmology observations (3)
- Dark Matter (3)
- Dark energy (3)
- Differential Geometry (3)
- Einstein-Maxwell Equations (3)
- Electrovacuum (3)
- Publication Year
- Publication
-
- All Physics Faculty Publications (13)
- Dartmouth Scholarship (13)
- Physics Faculty Publications (8)
- David Kastor (7)
- Eric Addison (7)
-
- Physics and Astronomy (7)
- Robert A McNees IV (6)
- Doctoral Dissertations (5)
- Branch Mathematics and Statistics Faculty and Staff Publications (4)
- Department of Physics and Astronomy Faculty Publications (4)
- Publications and Research (4)
- Charles G. Torre (3)
- Faculty and Research Publications (3)
- LSU Doctoral Dissertations (3)
- Mathematics, Physics, and Computer Science Faculty Articles and Research (3)
- Physics: Faculty Publications and Other Works (3)
- Publications (3)
- Research Vignettes (3)
- Subhajit Kumar Ganguly (3)
- Celebration of Research and Creative Scholarship (2)
- Dartmouth College Ph.D Dissertations (2)
- Doctoral Dissertations and Master's Theses (2)
- Graduate Theses and Dissertations (2)
- Honors Theses (2)
- Hontas F Farmer (2)
- Oglethorpe Journal of Undergraduate Research (2)
- Physics (2)
- Physics & Astronomy ETDs (2)
- Presentations and Publications (2)
- STAR Program Research Presentations (2)
- Publication Type
- File Type
Articles 1 - 30 of 161
Full-Text Articles in Physics
Neutrino’S Non-Zero Electric Potential As An Origin Of Gravitation, Domain Structure And Expansion Of The Universe., Polievkt Perov
Neutrino’S Non-Zero Electric Potential As An Origin Of Gravitation, Domain Structure And Expansion Of The Universe., Polievkt Perov
College of Arts & Sciences Faculty Works
The axial electric potentials of neutrinos as neutral composite structures, while being very small at large distances, do not vanish, and the same can be said about the neutrino “asymmetric dipoles” (paired neutrinos of not the same kind). Depending on the orientation of the “asymmetric dipole”, its far-field electric potential in some direction can be positive or negative, interacting with other “dipoles” at that large distance attractively or repulsively depending on their mutual orientation. The mutual orientation of the dipoles locally (inside a galaxy) might be such that they are aligned and experience the attractive force toward the local center …
Synchronicity: An Analysis Of Einstein's Halfway Rule, Preslava Nikolova
Synchronicity: An Analysis Of Einstein's Halfway Rule, Preslava Nikolova
Rushton Journal of Undergraduate Humanities Research
For the modern world to function, Global Positioning System satellites must synchronize to clocks on Earth. This paper examines a concept that underlies GPS systems, namely Albert Einstein’s halfway rule—the idea that a line of simultaneity exists between two events in different systems. This essay discusses how Einstein used conventionalist methods to establish ½ as a constant value for σ to take advantage of the property of symmetry.
Conventions, Definitions, Identities, And Other Useful Formulae, Robert A. Mcnees Iv
Conventions, Definitions, Identities, And Other Useful Formulae, Robert A. Mcnees Iv
Physics: Faculty Publications and Other Works
As the name suggests, these notes contain a summary of important conventions, definitions, identities, and various formulas that I often refer to. They may prove useful for researchers working in General Relativity, Supergravity, String Theory, Cosmology, and related areas.
Godel, Escherian Staircase And Possibility Of Quantum Wormhole With Liquid Crystalline Phase Of Iced-Water - Part Ii: Experiment Description, Victor Christianto, T. Daniel Chandra, Florentin Smarandache
Godel, Escherian Staircase And Possibility Of Quantum Wormhole With Liquid Crystalline Phase Of Iced-Water - Part Ii: Experiment Description, Victor Christianto, T. Daniel Chandra, Florentin Smarandache
Branch Mathematics and Statistics Faculty and Staff Publications
The present article was partly inspired by G. Pollack’s book, and also Dadoloff, Saxena & Jensen (2010). As a senior physicist colleague and our friend, Robert N. Boyd, wrote in a journal (JCFA, Vol. 1, No. 2, 2022), for example, things and Beings can travel between Universes, intentionally or unintentionally [4]. In this short remark, we revisit and offer short remark to Neil Boyd’s ideas and trying to connect them with geometry of musical chords as presented by D. Tymoczko and others, then to Escherian staircase and then to Jacob’s ladder which seems to pointto possibility to interpret Jacob’s vision …
Godel, Escherian Staircase And Possibility Of Quantum Wormhole With Liquid Crystalline Phase Of Iced-Water - Part I: Theoretical Underpinning, Victor Christianto, T. Daniel Chandra, Florentin Smarandache
Godel, Escherian Staircase And Possibility Of Quantum Wormhole With Liquid Crystalline Phase Of Iced-Water - Part I: Theoretical Underpinning, Victor Christianto, T. Daniel Chandra, Florentin Smarandache
Branch Mathematics and Statistics Faculty and Staff Publications
As a senior physicist colleague and our friend, Robert N. Boyd, wrote in a journal (JCFA, Vol. 1,. 2, 2022), Our universe is but one page in a large book [4]. For example, things and Beings can travel between Universes, intentionally or unintentionally. In this short remark, we revisit and offer short remark to Neil’s ideas and trying to connect them with geometrization of musical chords as presented by D. Tymoczko and others, then to Escher staircase and then to Jacob’s ladder which seems to point to possibility to interpret Jacob’s vision as described in the ancient book of Genesis …
Cosmological Vector Fields And Constraining The Neutrino Masses, Avery J. Tishue
Cosmological Vector Fields And Constraining The Neutrino Masses, Avery J. Tishue
Dartmouth College Ph.D Dissertations
In this thesis I explore two main topics: the role and consequences of cosmological vector fields, and new ideas for constraining fundamental physics with state-of-the-art experiments. These topics are disparate in content and technique but unified in their attempt to leverage novel approaches to better understand longstanding questions in cosmology. These questions, such as ``What is causing the universe to accelerate today?'' and ``What are the neutrino masses?'', underpin the modern cosmological paradigm. They play a key role in our understanding of cosmic history, the formation of structure, and the fate of our universe. Answers to or hints about these …
Constraining H0 Via Extragalactic Parallax, Nicholas Ferree
Constraining H0 Via Extragalactic Parallax, Nicholas Ferree
Honors Theses
We examine the prospects for measurement of the Hubble parameter 𝐻0 via observation of the secular parallax of other galaxies due to our own motion relative to the cosmic microwave background rest frame. Peculiar velocities make distance measurements to individual galaxies highly uncertain, but a survey sampling many galaxies can still yield a precise 𝐻0 measurement. We use both a Fisher information formalism and simulations to forecast errors in 𝐻0 from such surveys, marginalizing over the unknown peculiar velocities. The optimum survey observes ∼ 102 galaxies within a redshift 𝐻0max = 0.06. The required errors …
Characterization Of Extended Uncertainty Principle Black Holes, Juan Uribe, Jonas Mureika
Characterization Of Extended Uncertainty Principle Black Holes, Juan Uribe, Jonas Mureika
Honors Thesis
Black Holes are special objects as they are at the intersection of Quantum Mechanics and General Relativity. A central tenant of quantum mechanics is the Uncertainty Principle that dictates we cannot know with complete certainty position and momentum at the same time. The Extended Uncertainty Principle introduces a position-related uncertainty correction L_* to account for General Relativity. In a previous paper, a black hole metric associated with the Extended Uncertainty Principle was derived, by modifying the metric function of a Schwarzschild black hole. This metric introduces near-horizon structures that should produce observable effects, such as love numbers, gravitational wave echoes, …
New Physics In The Age Of Precision Cosmology, Vivian I. Sabla
New Physics In The Age Of Precision Cosmology, Vivian I. Sabla
Dartmouth College Ph.D Dissertations
The Lambda-cold dark matter (LCDM) model has become the standard model of cosmology because of its ability to reproduce a vast array of cosmological observations, from the earliest moments of our Universe, to the current period of accelerated expansion, which it does with great accuracy. However, the success of this model only distracts from its inherent flaws and ambiguities. LCDM is purely phenomenological, providing no physical explanation for the nature of dark matter, responsible for the formation and evolution of large-scale structure, and giving an inconclusive explanation for dark energy, which drives the current period of accelerated expansion.
Furthermore, cracks …
Properties Of Slicing Conditions For Charged Black Holes, Sean E. Li
Properties Of Slicing Conditions For Charged Black Holes, Sean E. Li
Honors Projects
We consider an earlier analysis by Baumgarte and de Oliveira (2022) of static Bona-Massó slices of stationary, nonrotating, uncharged black holes, represented by Schwarzschild spacetimes, and generalize that approach to Reissner-Nordström (RN) spacetimes, representing stationary, nonrotating black holes that carry a nonzero charge. This charge is parametrized by the charge-to-mass ratio λ ≡ Q/M, where M is the black-hole mass and the charge Q may represent electrical charge or act as a placeholder for extensions of general relativity. We use a height-function approach to construct time-independent, spherically symmetric slices that satisfy a so-called Bona-Massó slicing condition. We …
Black Holes, Disk Structures, And Cosmological Implications In E-Dimensional Space, Subhash Kak, Menas C. Kafatos
Black Holes, Disk Structures, And Cosmological Implications In E-Dimensional Space, Subhash Kak, Menas C. Kafatos
Mathematics, Physics, and Computer Science Faculty Articles and Research
We examine a modern view of the universe that builds on achieved successes of quantum mechanics, general relativity, and information theory, bringing them together in integrated approach that is founded on the realization that space itself is e-dimensional. The global and local implications of noninteger dimensionality are examined, and how it may have increased from the value of zero to its current value is investigated. We find surprising aspects that tie to structures in the universe, black holes, and the role of observations.
Astrophysics, Cosmology And Particle Phenomenology At The Energy Frontier, Jorge Fernandez Soriano
Astrophysics, Cosmology And Particle Phenomenology At The Energy Frontier, Jorge Fernandez Soriano
Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects
This dissertation consists of two parts, treating significantly separated fields. Each part consists on several chapters, each treating a somewhat isolated topic from the rest. In each chapter, I present some of the work developed during my passage through the graduate program, which has mostly been published elsewhere.
Part I – Cosmic Rays and Particle Physics
- Chapter 1: In this chapter we present an introduction to the topic of cosmic ray physics, with an special focus on the so-called ultra high energy cosmic rays: their potential origins, effects during their propagation between their sources and Earth, the different techniques used …
The Cosmic History Of X-Ray Binary Evolution, Woodrow Gilbertson
The Cosmic History Of X-Ray Binary Evolution, Woodrow Gilbertson
Graduate Theses and Dissertations
The Chandra Deep Fields provide an extraordinary window into the high-energy history of the cosmos. Observations of non-active galaxies within the deep fields can be leveraged to extract information about the formation and evolution of X-ray binaries (XRBs). Previous studies have suggested that the evolution of XRB luminosity can be expressed a function of physical parameters such as star formation rate, stellar mass, stellar age, and metallicity. The goal of this work is to develop and implement a complete physical parameterization for the luminosity of XRB populations, which can be utilized for a variety of further studies.
Chapter 1 provides …
Fermion-Induced Electroweak Symmetry Non-Restoration Via Temperature-Dependent Masses, Yu Hang Ng
Fermion-Induced Electroweak Symmetry Non-Restoration Via Temperature-Dependent Masses, Yu Hang Ng
Department of Physics and Astronomy: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research
Standard Model (SM) and many extensions of SM predict that the electroweak (EW) symmetry was restored in the early universe when the temperature was around 160 GeV. However, recent studies showed that the interactions between some new scalars and SU(2)_L Higgs doublet(s) can cause the EW symmetry to remain broken at temperatures well above the EW scale in certain renormalizable extensions of SM. In this study, we found that new fermions from renormalizable models can also induce this EW symmetry non-restoration effect, provided that they have the appropriate temperature-dependent masses. These masses can arise naturally from the interactions between the …
Surpassing The Standard Quantum Limit Using An Optical Spring, Torrey Cullen
Surpassing The Standard Quantum Limit Using An Optical Spring, Torrey Cullen
LSU Doctoral Dissertations
In 1916, Albert Einstein predicted the existence of gravitational waves based on his new theory of general relativity. He predicted an accelerating mass with a non-zero quadrupole moment would emit energy in the form of gravitational waves. Often referred to as ripples in space-time, gravitational waves are extremely small by the time reach Earth, potentially having traveled hundreds of megaparsecs. It is common for these ripples in space-time to stretch and squeeze matter 1000 times smaller than the width of a proton.
Laser interferometer observatories were first built in the 1990s in the US and Europe, and as sensitivity improvements …
Calibration Of The Lux-Zeplin Dual-Phase Xenon Time Projection Chamber With Internally Injected Radioisotopes, Christopher D. Nedlik
Calibration Of The Lux-Zeplin Dual-Phase Xenon Time Projection Chamber With Internally Injected Radioisotopes, Christopher D. Nedlik
Doctoral Dissertations
Self-shielding in ton-scale liquid xenon (LXe) detectors presents a unique challenge for calibrating detector response to interactions in the detector's innermost volume. Calibration radioisotopes must be injected directly into the LXe to reach the central volume, where they must either decay away with a short half life or be purified out. We present an overview of, and results from, the prototype source injection system (SIS) developed at the University of Massachusetts Amherst for the LUX-ZEPLIN experiment (LZ). The SIS is designed to refine techniques for the injection and removal of precise activities of various calibration radioisotopes that are useful in …
Introduction To Classical Field Theory, Charles G. Torre
Introduction To Classical Field Theory, Charles G. Torre
All Complete Monographs
This is an introduction to classical field theory. Topics treated include: Klein-Gordon field, electromagnetic field, scalar electrodynamics, Dirac field, Yang-Mills field, gravitational field, Noether theorems relating symmetries and conservation laws, spontaneous symmetry breaking, Lagrangian and Hamiltonian formalisms.
The Meaning Of Dark, Light And Shadows: Inferences In Art, Materiality And Cultural Practices, Frank Prendergast
The Meaning Of Dark, Light And Shadows: Inferences In Art, Materiality And Cultural Practices, Frank Prendergast
Book/Book Chapter
Our visual awareness relies on light acting on the eye to perceive materiality and colour. Medieval thought wrestled to articulate and comprehend its nature. The notebooks of Leonardo Da Vinci, for example, included his descriptions to define light and make comparisons so as to differentiate between light and shadow. His focus was on the illumination of surfaces from the perspective of a painter, seeing shadows as ‘the diminution of light by the intervention of an opaque body’ and ‘the counterpart of luminous rays’. In his mind, a shadow ‘stood between light and darkness’, with darkness being ‘the absence of light’. …
A New Non-Inheriting Homogeneous Solution Of The Einstein-Maxwell Equations With Cosmological Term, Charles G. Torre
A New Non-Inheriting Homogeneous Solution Of The Einstein-Maxwell Equations With Cosmological Term, Charles G. Torre
Research Vignettes
No abstract provided.
The Differentialgeometry Package, Ian M. Anderson, Charles G. Torre
The Differentialgeometry Package, Ian M. Anderson, Charles G. Torre
Downloads
This is the entire DifferentialGeometry package, a zip file (DifferentialGeometry.zip) containing (1) a Maple Library file, DifferentialGeometryUSU.mla, (2) a Maple help file DifferentialGeometry.help, (3) a Maple Library file, DGApplicatons.mla. This is the latest version of the DifferentialGeometry software; it supersedes what is released with Maple.
Perturbative Unitarity And Nec Violation In Genesis Cosmology, Yong Cai, Ji Xu, Shuai Zhao, Siyi Zhou
Perturbative Unitarity And Nec Violation In Genesis Cosmology, Yong Cai, Ji Xu, Shuai Zhao, Siyi Zhou
Physics Faculty Publications
Explorations of the violation of null energy condition (NEC) in cosmology could enrich our understanding of the very early universe and the related gravity theories. Although a fully stable NEC violation can be realized in the “beyond Horndeski” theory, it remains an open question whether a violation of the NEC is allowed by some fundamental properties of UV-complete theories or the consistency requirements of effective field theory (EFT). We investigate the tree-level perturbative unitarity for stable NEC violations in the contexts of both Galileon and “beyond Horndeski” genesis cosmology, in which the universe is asymptotically Minkowskian in the past. We …
𝒯, 𝒫-Odd Effects In The Luoh⁺ Cation, Daniel E. Maison, Leonid V. Skripnikov, Gleb Penyazkov, Matt Grau, Alexander N. Petrov
𝒯, 𝒫-Odd Effects In The Luoh⁺ Cation, Daniel E. Maison, Leonid V. Skripnikov, Gleb Penyazkov, Matt Grau, Alexander N. Petrov
Physics Faculty Publications
The LuOH+ cation is a promising system to search for manifestations of time reversal and spatial parity violation effects. Such effects in LuOH+ induced by the electron electric dipole moment eEDM and the scalar-pseudoscalar interaction of the nucleus with electrons, characterized by ks constant, in LuOH+ are studied. The enhancement factors, polarization in the external electric field, hyperfine interaction, and rovibrational structure are calculated. The study is required for the experiment preparation and extraction of the eEDM and ks values from experimental data.
Superluminal Propagation On A Moving Braneworld, Brian Greene, Daniel Kabat, Janna Levin, Arjun S. Menon
Superluminal Propagation On A Moving Braneworld, Brian Greene, Daniel Kabat, Janna Levin, Arjun S. Menon
Publications and Research
We consider a braneworld scenario in the simplest setting, M4 × S1, with a four-dimensional (4D) Minkowski metric induced on the brane, and establish the possibility of superluminal propagation. If the brane is at rest, the 4D Lorentz symmetry of the brane is exact, but if the brane is in motion, it is broken globally by the compactification. By measuring bulk fields, an observer on the brane sees a slice through a higher-dimensional field profile, which carries an imprint of the extra dimensions even when the brane is at rest. If the brane is in motion, we …
Topics In Gravitational Wave Physics, Aaron David Johnson
Topics In Gravitational Wave Physics, Aaron David Johnson
Graduate Theses and Dissertations
We begin with a brief introduction to gravitational waves. Next we look into the origin of the Chandrasekhar transformations between the different equations found by perturbing a Schwarzschild black hole. Some of the relationships turn out to be Darboux transformations. Then we turn to GW150914, the first detected black hole binary system, to see if the nonlinear memory might be detectable by current and future detectors. Finally, we develop an updated code for computing equatorial extreme mass ratio inspirals which will be open sourced as soon as it has been generalized for arbitrary inclinations.
An Analysis Of The Debate Over Creation, Evolution, And The Timeline Of The Universe At An Ecumenical Christian University, Mason Pohlman
An Analysis Of The Debate Over Creation, Evolution, And The Timeline Of The Universe At An Ecumenical Christian University, Mason Pohlman
Honors Scholars Collaborative Projects
Throughout a significant portion of history and within modern culture, the fields of science and religion appear to be competing for the same holds in a person’s belief system. Universities are where academics and the sciences are the prevailing held truth, while in churches, the Bible reigns as supreme authority. However, in a Christian academic setting, the predominate school of thought in belief systems might turn into a little more of a melting pot. By analyzing gathered personal data (via surveys and interviews), one can begin to piece together the predominate thoughts on the apparent conflict between religion and science …
Response To Pitkanen’S Solar System Model: Towards Gross-Pitaevskiian Description Of Solar System And Galaxies And More Evidence Of Chiral Superfluid Vortices, Victor Christianto, Florentin Smarandache, Yunita Umniyati
Response To Pitkanen’S Solar System Model: Towards Gross-Pitaevskiian Description Of Solar System And Galaxies And More Evidence Of Chiral Superfluid Vortices, Victor Christianto, Florentin Smarandache, Yunita Umniyati
Branch Mathematics and Statistics Faculty and Staff Publications
In a new paper in recent issue of this journal (PSTJ), Prof. M. Pitkanen describes a solar system model inspired by spiral galaxies. While we appreciate his new approach, we find it lacks substantial discussion on the nature of vortices and chirality in galaxy. Therefore we submit a viewpoint that Gross-Pitaevskii model can be a more complete description of both solar system and also spiral galaxies, especially taking into account the nature of chirality and vortices in galaxies. In this article, we also hope to bring out some correspondence among existing models, so we discuss shortly: the topological vortice approach, …
Calibration Transients In Ligo Detectors, Thomas Daniel Abbott
Calibration Transients In Ligo Detectors, Thomas Daniel Abbott
LSU Doctoral Dissertations
This dissertation describes a novel method of analyzing fluctuations in the time-dependent calibration models of the LIGO interferometers to estimate their effect on strain reconstruction for gravitational-wave detections. The time-dependence of the calibration model of each detector is tracked with a set of parameters which are continuously measured while the interferometers are operating. These parameters track slow variations in the sensing function of the detectors as well as the actuators that hold the detectors in an operational state. The time-dependent parameter data during the second observation run (O2 [November 30, 2016 16:00 UTC to August 25, 2017 22:00:00 UTC]) and …
Magnetic Structure And Radiative Captures Of Few-Nucleon Systems: Status And Prospects, Laura Elisa Marcucci, Rocco Schiavilla, Alex Gnech, Michele Viviani
Magnetic Structure And Radiative Captures Of Few-Nucleon Systems: Status And Prospects, Laura Elisa Marcucci, Rocco Schiavilla, Alex Gnech, Michele Viviani
Physics Faculty Publications
We review the main ingredients for an ab-initio study of few-nucleon reactions of astrophysical interest within the chiral effective field theory approach, with particular attention to radiative captures relevant for Big Bang Nucleosynthesis and stellar evolution. We conclude with an outlook for ongoing and future work.
Precise Mass Determination Of Spt-Cl J2106-5844, The Most Massive Cluster At Z > 1, Jinhyub Kim, M. James Jee, Saul Perlmutter, Brian Hayden, David Rubin, Xiaosheng Huang, Greg Aldering, Jongwan Ko
Precise Mass Determination Of Spt-Cl J2106-5844, The Most Massive Cluster At Z > 1, Jinhyub Kim, M. James Jee, Saul Perlmutter, Brian Hayden, David Rubin, Xiaosheng Huang, Greg Aldering, Jongwan Ko
Physics and Astronomy
We present a detailed high-resolution weak-lensing study of SPT-CL J2106-5844 at z = 1.132, claimed to be the most massive system discovered at z > 1 in the South Pole Telescope Sunyaev–Zel'dovich survey. Based on the deep imaging data from the Advanced Camera for Surveys and Wide Field Camera 3 on board the Hubble Space Telescope, we find that the cluster mass distribution is asymmetric, composed of a main clump and a subclump ~640 kpc west thereof. The central clump is further resolved into two smaller northwestern and southeastern substructures separated by ~150 kpc. We show that this rather complex …
Dark Matter Production Beyond The Thermal Wimp Paradigm: An Exploration Of Early Matter Domination Scenarios, Jacek Ksawery Osinski
Dark Matter Production Beyond The Thermal Wimp Paradigm: An Exploration Of Early Matter Domination Scenarios, Jacek Ksawery Osinski
Physics & Astronomy ETDs
In the standard thermal history of the Universe, the energy density is dominated by radiation throughout the postinflationary era, until matter-radiation equality after big bang nucleosynthesis (BBN). However, we currently do not have any observational probes of the pre-BBN period, and radiation domination (RD) is therefore an assumption. Generic early Universe models predict the presence of additional components in the postinflationary Universe which can lead to periods of nonstandard evolution before the onset of BBN. A prominent example of such a period is a phase of early matter domination (EMD) in which the Universe undergoes matter-dominated expansion for a time, …