Over the last decade, the Effective Field Theory of Large Scale Structure (EFTofLSS) has emerged as a frontrunner in the effort to produce accurate models of cosmological statistics. Quantities such as power spectra can be fit with sub-percent precision, and there is a wealth of literature applying the formalism to more complex statistics. It is interesting to ask what lies ahead for the theory. Can it be used for cosmological parameter inference? And is it just for statistics based on the 3D density field?
In this talk, I will present a pedagogical introduction to the EFTofLSS, discussing its motivation and basic formalism, as well as a few of its theoretical challenges. To demonstrate the utility of the theory beyond the blackboard, I will discuss the analysis of galaxy power spectra. Using this model, competitive constraints can be placed on cosmology utilizing all the large-scale spatial information, not just the position of the Baryon Acoustic Oscillations. In particular, this yields the strongest CMB-independent measurement of H0.
In answering the second question, I will introduce two less conventional applications of the EFTofLSS. Firstly, the marked density field. This is simply the matter field weighted by its local overdensity, and recent works have shown its power spectrum to be capable of placing strong constraints on the neutrino mass. I will discussing its perturbative modeling, highlighting its unusual features, and how the model allows us to shed light on the surprising constraining of the statistic. An additional statistic of interest is weak lensing. Creating an analytic model for this has its own complications, since it is sensitive to a large range of scales, requiring extensions to the usual EFTofLSS modeling. Crucial to this effort is the development of a matter power spectrum model which is accurate on all scales; I will present the results of recent modeling efforts within the ‘Effective Halo Model’, and discuss future applications to integrated statistics such as weak lensing.
