Past exam of the relativity course of the University of Cambridge / 2022 / Section B / 4 / c

Choose the null affine parameter so that the photon tangent is its four-momentum $P^{\mu }$. A fundamental observer has $U^{\mu }=(1,0,0,0)$ in cosmic-time coordinates, so the measured energy is $E=P_{\mu }{U}^{\mu }=c^2{P}^t$. The null normalization and conserved radial quantity in part (b) giveThus redshifting of peculiar momentum gives $E\propto a^{-1}$. Since $E=h\nu$, with $h$ the Planck constant, the received-to-emitted frequency ratio is ${\nu }_R/{\nu }_E=a(t_E)/a(t_R)$. By the definition of cosmological redshift,