Solution
ID: past-exam-of-the-mathematics-course-of-the-university-of-cambridge/2008/iii/paper-62/1/a/solution
Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge 2008 iii Paper 62 1 a Solution by
Codex 0 Created 2026-10-03 Updated 2026-10-14
Use units with . For the flat FRW metric, the Friedmann equation is , where is the Hubble parameter. The cosmological continuity equation for a separately conserved component with constant equation of state gives . Consequently radiation in cosmology scales as , pressureless matter as , and cosmological constant energy is constant. With , define the present critical density and cosmological density parameters byThe Hubble constant measures the expansion rate today. Here includes photons and relativistic neutrinos, includes baryons and cold dark matter, and measures the vacuum contribution. Spatial flatness implies . ThusSince conformal time satisfies , we have . Multiplication by provesFor an exam-level estimate, with , , , and the specified radiation in cosmology gives . These are rounded illustrative flat-universe values; precision cosmological density parameters depend on the fitted model. For comparison, the base flat-model fit in Planck 2018 cosmological parameters gives and .
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