The $τ$ of Neutral Hydrogen: Increased CMB Optical Depth at Long Wavelengths

Abstract

At wavelengths longer than 21 cm, photons from the long-wavelength tail of the cosmic microwave background (CMB) have a non-zero probability of being absorbed by distant neutral hydrogen. This provides an additional suppression of the observed CMB clustering in addition to the usual Thomson scattering. The optical depth as a function of frequency is sensitive to the 21 cm spin temperature $T_s$ of the gas as a function of cosmic time, with the excess optical depth peaking at a level of a few percent around 100 MHz. The details depend on the specifics of the heating of cosmic gas and the evolution of the neutral fraction $x_{HI}$. It is likely difficult to detect the CMB at these long radio wavelengths, but the cause is aided by the ability to cross-correlate with the already well-characterized fluctuations at cm/mm frequencies. We find that detecting CMB fluctuations at radio wavelengths corresponding to the 21 cm ``dark ages'' in cross-correlation with mm-wave maps may be easier than detecting the intrinsic 21 cm fluctuations. Measurement of the amplitude of CMB fluctuations as a function of radio wavelength provides a path for a new type of direct measurement of the combination $x_{HI}/T_s$ as a function of redshift.