The case against scaling defect models of cosmic structure formation

Abstract

We calculate predictions from defect models of structure formation for both the matter and Cosmic Microwave Background (CMB) over all observable scales. Our results point to a serious problem reconciling the observed large-scale galaxy distribution with the COBE normalization, a result which is robust for a wide range of defect parameters. We conclude that standard scaling defect models are in conflict with the data, and show how attempts to resolve the problem by considering non-scaling defects would require radical departures from the standard scaling picture.