Cosmological Results from the RAISIN Survey: Using Type Ia Supernovae in the Near Infrared as a Novel Path to Measure the Dark Energy Equation of State

Abstract

<jats:title>Abstract</jats:title> <jats:p>Type Ia supernovae (SNe Ia) are more precise standardizable candles when measured in the near-infrared (NIR) than in the optical. With this motivation, from 2012 to 2017 we embarked on the RAISIN program with the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) to obtain rest-frame NIR light curves for a cosmologically distant sample of 37 SNe Ia (0.2 ≲ <jats:italic>z</jats:italic> ≲ 0.6) discovered by Pan-STARRS and the Dark Energy Survey. By comparing higher-<jats:italic>z</jats:italic> HST data with 42 SNe Ia at <jats:italic>z</jats:italic> &lt; 0.1 observed in the NIR by the Carnegie Supernova Project, we construct a Hubble diagram from NIR observations (with only time of maximum light and some selection cuts from optical photometry) to pursue a unique avenue to constrain the dark energy equation-of-state parameter, <jats:italic>w</jats:italic>. We analyze the dependence of the full set of Hubble residuals on the SN Ia host galaxy mass and find Hubble residual steps of size ∼0.06-0.1 mag with 1.5<jats:italic>σ</jats:italic>−2.5<jats:italic>σ</jats:italic> significance depending on the method and step location used. Combining our NIR sample with cosmic microwave background constraints, we find 1 + <jats:italic>w</jats:italic> = −0.17 ± 0.12 (statistical + systematic errors). The largest systematic errors are the redshift-dependent SN selection biases and the properties of the NIR mass step. We also use these data to measure <jats:italic>H</jats:italic> <jats:sub>0</jats:sub> = 75.9 ± 2.2 km s<jats:sup>−1</jats:sup> Mpc<jats:sup>−1</jats:sup> from stars with geometric distance calibration in the hosts of eight SNe Ia observed in the NIR versus <jats:italic>H</jats:italic> <jats:sub>0</jats:sub> = 71.2 ± 3.8 km s<jats:sup>−1</jats:sup> Mpc<jats:sup>−1</jats:sup> using an inverse distance ladder approach tied to Planck. Using optical data, we find 1 + <jats:italic>w</jats:italic> = −0.10 ± 0.09, and with optical and NIR data combined, we find 1 + <jats:italic>w</jats:italic> = −0.06 ± 0.07; these shifts of up to ∼0.11 in <jats:italic>w</jats:italic> could point to inconsistency in the optical versus NIR SN models. There will be many opportunities to improve this NIR measurement and better understand systematic uncertainties through larger low-<jats:italic>z</jats:italic> samples, new light-curve models, calibration improvements, and eventually by building high-<jats:italic>z</jats:italic> samples from the Roman Space Telescope.</jats:p>