Cosmological constant \textit{vis-à-vis} dynamical vacuum: Bold challenging the CDM

DOI10.1142/S0217751X16300350zbMATH Open1347.83005arXiv1612.02449OpenAlexW2509083364MaRDI QIDQ2827313FDOQ2827313

Authors: Joan Solà 

Publication date: 19 October 2016

Published in: International Journal of Modern Physics A (Search for Journal in Brave)

Abstract: Next year we will celebrate 100 years of the cosmological term, $Lambda$, in Einstein's gravitational field equations, also 50 years since the cosmological constant problem was first formulated by Zeldovich, and almost about two decades of the observational evidence that a non-vanishing, positive, $Lambda$-term could be the simplest phenomenological explanation for the observed acceleration of the Universe. This mixed state of affairs already shows that we do no currently understand the theoretical nature of $Lambda$. In particular, we are still facing the crucial question whether $Lambda$ is truly a fundamental constant or a mildly evolving dynamical variable. At this point the matter should be settled once more empirically and, amazingly enough, the wealth of observational data at our disposal can presently shed true light on it. In this short review I summarize the situation of some of these studies. It turns out that the $Lambda=$const. hypothesis, despite being the simplest, may well not be the most favored one when we put it in hard-fought competition with specific dynamical models of the vacuum energy. Recently it has been shown that the overall fit to the cosmological observables $SNIa+BAO+H(z)+LSS+BBN+CMB$ do favor the class of "running" vacuum models (RVM's) -- in which $Lambda=Lambda(H)$ is a function of the Hubble rate -- against the "concordance" $Lambda$CDM model. The support is at an unprecedented level of $sim4sigma$ and is backed up with Akaike and Bayesian criteria leading to compelling evidence in favor of the RVM option and other related dynamical vacuum models. I also address the implications of this framework on the possible time evolution of the fundamental constants of Nature.

Full work available at URL: https://arxiv.org/abs/1612.02449

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zbMATH Keywords

cosmologyvacuum energyfundamental constants

Mathematics Subject Classification ID

Relativistic cosmology (83F05) Observational and experimental questions in relativity and gravitational theory (83B05) Research exposition (monographs, survey articles) pertaining to relativity and gravitational theory (83-02)

Cites Work

• Model Selection and Multimodel Inference

Cited In (12)

• Revisiting the decoupling effects in the running of the Cosmological Constant
• Stringy running vacuum model and current tensions in cosmology
• Cosmological constant problem and renormalized vacuum energy density in curved background
• Cosmology from a running vacuum model driven by a scalar field
• The \(\bar{\Lambda}\mathrm{CDM}\) cosmology: from inflation to dark energy through running \(\Lambda\)
• Solving the main cosmological puzzles with a generalized time varying vacuum energy
• Vacuum dynamics in the universe versus a rigid \(\Lambda=\mathrm{const.}\)
• Dynamical cosmological term in modified gravity
• Reference Level of the Vacuum Energy Density of the Universe and Astrophysical Data
• Vacuum dynamics in the Universe versus a rigid \(\Lambda = \mathrm{const.}\)
• Particle and entropy production in the running vacuum universe
• Scalar field theory description of the running vacuum model: the vacuumon

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