In the analysis of a phase transition, a critical dimension is a spatial dimension at which the character of fluctuations and critical behavior changes. Below a lower critical dimension the relevant ordered phase cannot persist; above an upper critical dimension mean-field critical exponents apply. This is distinct from the critical dimension of string theory, where cancellation of quantum anomalies selects a target-spacetime dimension.

Universality of critical phenomena is the agreement of critical exponents or normalized scaling forms between microscopically different systems. Dimension, symmetry and interaction range help determine the universality class. A renormalization-group flow can explain this agreement by showing that different microscopic models approach the same fixed-point description, while irrelevant differences fade at large scales.

A simple symmetric random walk on a cycle of $N\ge 2$ vertices, started at vertex zero, has its last newly visited vertex uniformly distributed on the other $N-1$ vertices. To prove this for a specified vertex $j\ne 0$, cut the cycle at $j$, representing it by a path with absorbing endpoints $0,N$ both corresponding to $j$. All other vertices are visited before $j$ exactly when both interior endpoints $1,N-1$ are visited before absorption. After the first hit on either interior endpoint, the probability of reaching the other before the adjacent absorbing endpoint is $1/(N-1)$ by gambler's ruin. The Strong Markov property makes this the desired probability, independent of the original start position. For $N=2$ the sole unvisited vertex has probability one.

Suppose a finite-alphabet transition kernel is uniformly positive and histories agreeing in their most recent $r$ symbols have total variation distance at most $b_r$. Choose decreasing bounds with $b_r<1$ and summable tail. A maximal coupling can be dominated by a match-length chain that increments with probability $1-b_r$ and resets with probability $b_r$. Its chance of never resetting is ${\prod }_{r\ge 0}(1-b_r)>0$. Successive failed attempts therefore end almost surely, leaving a final infinite run of matches. The dominating chain does not depend on the histories, so future-block laws forget the remote past uniformly. This proves uniqueness of a two-sided law with the prescribed transition kernel without assuming stationarity first.

Let ${ϵ}_{{\nu }_e}(z)$ be the comoving spectral emissivity, namely total emitted spectral luminosity per comoving volume. In a homogeneous transparent FRW metric, a radial shell contributes its comoving volume times the cosmological spectral flux-density relation. Its transverse-area factors cancel, leaving the displayed integral. In a flat model this cancellation is explicit: $d{V}_c=r^2(c/H)dzd\Omega$, whereas $F_{{\nu }_0}=(1+z)L_{{\nu }_e}/[4\pi (1+z{)}^2{r}^2]$. Absorption inserts a transmission factor, and evolving sources are represented by the redshift dependence of $ϵ$.

Normalize the scale factor to $a_0=1$. Identical isotropic sources of bolometric luminosity $L$ and conserved comoving number density $n_0=a^{3}n$ produce all-sky radiative flux ${\mathcal{F}}_0=cL{n}_0\int a(t)dt$ in a transparent FLRW metric. The source counts on an FLRW past light cone and cosmological flux dimming cancel the transverse shell-area factor. For arbitrary proper source density the expression is instead $cL\int n(t)a(t{)}^{4}dt$. The intensity per solid angle is ${\mathcal{F}}_0/(4\pi )$. A detector of collecting area $A$ receives power $A{\mathcal{F}}_0$ under an all-sky effective-area convention.

Our observer location is not specially privileged. In cosmology this assumption allows cosmological isotropy observed around us to be interpreted statistically as cosmological isotropy around other typical observers. It is an assumption about typicality, not a deduction from one observer's sky or from the Einstein field equations alone.

Cosmological isotropy means that coarse-grained spatial observations or their statistics are unchanged by rotations about an observer. In an FRW metric it holds about every comoving location. cosmological isotropy about a single location is weaker than spatial homogeneity: a radially inhomogeneous model centred on that location can also have an isotropic sky.

In a radiation-dominated toy model with $\Gamma ={\alpha }_Y^4{T}^5/m_Y^4$, setting the interaction rate equal to the Hubble parameter gives the displayed decoupling scale. The transition $T_D=m_Y$ defines $m_{\mathrm{nr}}$. For smaller masses, $x_D=m_Y/T_D=(m_{\mathrm{nr}}/m_Y{)}^{1/3}\gg 1$. An instantaneous chemically equilibrated cosmological particle freeze-out estimate gives $n_Y/s=[45g_Y/(2{\pi }^2{g}_{\ast s})(2\pi {)}^{-3/2}]x_D^{3/2}{e}^{-x_D}$. This estimate presupposes number-changing thermal equilibrium, radiation domination and the assumed rate law, rather than following from elastic thermalization alone.

A rate proportional to $T$ competes with radiation-era expansion proportional to $T^2$. The interaction-to-expansion ratio therefore grows as the universe cools, crossing unity near $T_{\mathrm{eq}}={\alpha }_Y^2{m}_{\mathrm{pl}}/(1.66\sqrt{g_{\ast }})$. If a phase transition occurs at $T_c\gg T_{\mathrm{eq}}$, this high-temperature interaction never establishes thermal equilibrium before the transition. Subsequent faster number-changing processes may still establish a thermal distribution; the initial state is not automatically Fermi-Dirac just because the particles are relativistic.

A thermal relic is a surviving particle population whose earlier abundance was set by chemical thermal equilibrium with the cosmic plasma. After number-changing reactions cease and cosmic entropy is conserved, its comoving abundance is described by the yield $Y=n/s$. A relativistically decoupled species can retain an appreciable yield, whereas a species remaining in thermal equilibrium after becoming nonrelativistic is subject to Boltzmann suppression. Its later mass density, lifetime and momentum distribution determine its cosmological effects.

For a radiation-era transition at $T_i\sim \eta$, use $H_i=1.66\sqrt{g_{\ast }}{\eta }^2/m_{\mathrm{pl}}$ and initial number density $n_i=C_n{H}_i^3$. Stable monopoles of mass $C_M\eta$ redshift as nonrelativistic matter. With comoving entropy conservation,The fourth-power scale dependence makes even a small causal initial abundance incompatible with conventional high-scale grand unification unless inflation, later entropy production or efficient destruction reduces the relic population.

// Target: cosmology.bigb

A relativistic relic that decouples between pion and muon annihilation keeps $a{T}_H$ constant. The coupled bath initially contains photons, electron-positron pairs, muon-antimuon pairs and three neutrino-antineutrino species, with entropy degrees of freedom $57/4$. After muon annihilation this is $43/4$, giving the displayed temperature ratio. After neutrino decoupling, electron-positron annihilation heats photons by $(11/4{)}^{1/3}$, so the final relic-to-photon ratio becomes $(172/627{)}^{1/3}$. This counting assumes the species are relativistic when counted and treats annihilations and decoupling as sharp equilibrium transitions.

Geometrical distances to nearby calibrators determine the luminosities of indicators that can be observed farther away. Those indicators calibrate still more luminous indicators in turn. A ladder may connect parallax or maser distances to Cepheid variables and then to Type Ia supernovae. Each step propagates its calibration uncertainty to the final distance scale and the inferred Hubble constant.

The cosmic microwave background temperature is about $2.725\mathrm{K}$, corresponding to the displayed thermal energy. The conversion uses $k_B\simeq 8.61733\times 10^{-5}eV/K$. Thus $2.35\mathrm{meV}$ would correspond to about $27.3\mathrm{K}$, rather than the present CMB. Primary references are NASA's CMB temperature measurements and NIST's Boltzmann constant in electronvolts per kelvin.

Hot electrons in galaxy clusters scatter photons of the cosmic microwave background, producing a characteristic spectral distortion. The thermal contribution measures a line-of-sight integral of electron pressure, whereas X-ray emission depends approximately on the integral of electron density squared times a temperature-dependent emissivity. Combining the two with a geometrical model can constrain a cluster's physical size and hence its angular diameter distance. Temperature structure and departures from the assumed geometry introduce systematic uncertainty.

The bilinear hybrid superpotential couples an inflaton $S$ to two waterfall fields $u,v$. In global supersymmetry, $V=|g{|}^2(|uv-\zeta {|}^2+|S{|}^2(|u{|}^2+|v{|}^2))$. The branch $u=v=0$ breaks supersymmetry and is transversely stable for $|S{|}^2>|\zeta |$, while the zero-energy branch $S=0$, $uv=\zeta$ is supersymmetric. A canonical Kähler potential in supergravity slightly lifts the inflationary valley. It must not be described as two isolated stationary minima of the full potential.

Power-law inflation is cosmic inflation with a scale factor proportional to $t^p$ for constant $p>1$. Its Hubble parameter is $H=p/t$ and its first Hubble slow-roll parameter is ${ϵ}_H=1/p$. The comoving Hubble radius decreases as $t^{1-p}$. A canonical inflaton with an exponential inflaton potential admits an exact example. Because ${ϵ}_H$ is constant, an indefinitely maintained power law has no graceful exit from inflation.

A graceful exit from inflation ends sustained accelerating expansion and connects it to a hot radiation-dominated universe. Crossing ${ϵ}_H=1$ ends acceleration in a homogeneous expanding model; reheating requires an additional mechanism to transfer inflaton energy into other species. Pure exponential-potential power-law inflation keeps ${ϵ}_H$ constant and its inflaton potential has no finite minimum, so neither an automatic endpoint nor oscillatory reheating follows from that potential alone.

The coronagraph inner working angle describes how close to the blocked source a specified coronagraph can usefully transmit or detect a faint neighbor. It requires a criterion, such as a chosen fraction of the far off-axis coronagraph throughput, and is often expressed in units of $\lambda /D$. It is not automatically the coronagraphic focal plane mask radius or a guarantee of detection. Small separations make useful source transmission and accurate control of wavefront errors particularly demanding. ^[ref].