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Abstract: Intergalactic space is a tracer of the underlying gravitational potential. Its main manifestation is the so-called Lyman-alpha forest: absorption features due to intervening neutral hydrogen along the line-of-sight to a distant quasar. I will review the physics of the intergalactic medium and its usage as a probe of the geometry and dynamics of our Universe. The main results will be discussed in terms of: constraints on neutrino masses, baryonic acoustic oscillations, the nature of dark matter (warm dark matter and non-standard scenarios).
I will also briefly discuss intensity mapping due to the 21 cm line and its complementarity to the absorption mechanism.