Structure Formation in the Early Universe

Understand

The standard theory of cosmic structure formation posits that the present-day rich structure of the Universe developed through gravitational amplification of tiny matter density fluctuations generated in its very early history.

• Recent observations of the cosmic microwave background, large-scale structure, and distant supernovae determined the energy content of the Universe and the basic statistics of the initial density field with great accuracy.
• It has become possible to make accurate predictions for the formation and nonlinear growth of structure from early to the present epochs.
• We review recent progress in the theory of structure formation in the universe.