The splashback radius in symmetron gravity

Abstract

The splashback radius $r_\mathrm{sp}$ has been identified in cosmological $N$-body simulations as an important scale associated with gravitational collapse and the phase-space distribution of recently accreted material. We employ a semi-analytical approach to study the spherical collapse of dark matter haloes in symmetron gravity and provide insights into how the phenomenology of splashback is affected. The symmetron is a scalar-tensor theory of gravity which exhibits a screening mechanism whereby higher-density regions are screened from the effects of a fifth force. In this model, we find that, as over-densities grow over cosmic time, the inner region becomes heavily screened. In particular, we identify a sector of the parameter space for which material currently sitting at $r_\mathrm{sp}$ has followed, during the collapse, the formation of this screened region. As a result, we find that for this part of the parameter space the splashback radius is maximally affected by the symmetron force and we predict changes in $r_\mathrm{sp}$ up to around $10\%$ compared to its General Relativity value. Because this margin is within the precision of present splashback experiments, we expect this feature to soon provide constraints for symmetron gravity on previously unexplored scales.