English

DESI and SNe: Dynamical Dark Energy, $\Omega_m$ Tension or Systematics?

Cosmology and Nongalactic Astrophysics 2025-01-28 v2

Abstract

Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (DESI) observations, when combined with Cosmic Microwave Background (CMB) and Type Ia supernovae (SNe), have led to statistically significant dynamical dark energy (DDE) claims. In this letter we reconstruct the Λ\LambdaCDM parameter Ωm\Omega_m from the w0waw_0 w_aCDM cosmologies advocated by the DESI collaboration. We identify i) a mild increasing Ωm\Omega_m trend at high redshift and ii) a sharp departure from Λ\LambdaCDM at low redshift. The latter, which is statistically significant, is driven by SNe that are 1.9σ2.5σ1.9 \sigma- 2.5 \sigma discrepant with DESI full-shape galaxy clustering in overlapping redshift ranges. We identify a low redshift subsample of the Dark Energy Survey (DES) SNe sample that is discrepant with DESI at 3.4σ3.4 \sigma despite both observables probing the same effective redshift. SNe and BAO/full-shape modeling should not disagree on Ωm\Omega_m at the same effective redshift. This ``Ωm\Omega_m tension'' most likely points to unexplored systematics. In general, any \textit{bona fide} DDE signal should be confirmed independently across observables, so the DDE claims are premature.

Keywords

Cite

@article{arxiv.2412.12905,
  title  = {DESI and SNe: Dynamical Dark Energy, $\Omega_m$ Tension or Systematics?},
  author = {Eoin Ó Colgáin and M. M. Sheikh-Jabbari},
  journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:2412.12905},
  year   = {2025}
}

Comments

v1 4 pages, 5 figures; v2 added appendix with technical comments, beefed up references