Combining cosmic shear and large-scale structure data to constrain the acceleration of the Universe.

Recent observations inform us that the Universe is undergoing a phase of accelerated expansion. Identifying the physics which explains this is one of the great unsolved problems in astrophysics. A number of possible explanations have been proposed such as a non-zero vacuum energy or large-scale modifications to Einstein's theory of gravity. In this project we will examine how the combination of various probes such as the weak lensing aperture mass statistics and galaxy redshift space power spectrum and bispectrum can help shed new light on this great mystery. The projects that you will undertake will develop your understanding of theoretical physics, numerical cosmology and statistical modelling of data. We will make use of KiDS, GAMMA and BOSS survey data and also state of the art numerical simulations.