Related papers: Cosmic Acceleration, Dark Energy and Fundamental P…
Giving rise to a new and exciting research field, observations of the last 13 years established the accelerated expansion of the Universe. This is a strong indication of new physics, either in the form of a new energy component of the…
The possibility that the present acceleration of the universe is driven by a kind of viscous fluid is exploited. At background level this model is similar to the generalized Chaplygin gas model (GCGM). But, at perturbative level, the…
Observational evidence of dark energy that makes the Universe nearly flat at the present epoch is very strong. We study the link between spatial continuity and dark energy. We assume that comoving space is a compact 3-manifold of constant…
As an explanation for the acceleration of the universe, we propose dark matter with self-interactions characterized by a negative pressure; there is no vacuum energy whatsoever in this Cardassian model. These self-interactions may arise due…
This review on dark energy is intended for a wider audience, beginners as well as experts. It contains important notes on various aspects of dark energy and its alternatives. The section on Newtonian cosmology followed by heuristic…
It is argued that fluctuations of quantum fields in four-dimensional space do not give rise to dark energy, but are rather a negligible contribution to dark matter. By (relativistic) dark matter we mean that the relation between pressure…
The cosmological observations suggest that the presently accelerating universe should be filled by an exotic form of matter, violating the strong energy condition, of unknown nature and origin. We propose the viscous dark matter of a source…
We show that current cosmic acceleration can be explained by an almost massless scalar field experiencing quantum fluctuations during primordial inflation. Provided its mass does not exceed the Hubble parameter today, this field has been…
A simple description of the vacuum energy (cosmological constant) problem for non-experts is presented. Basic features of cosmology with non-zero vacuum energy are discussed. The astronomical data which indicate that the universe is filled…
If dark energy is a form of quintessence driven by a scalar field $\phi$ evolving down a monotonically decreasing potential $V(\phi)$ that passes sufficiently below zero, the universe is destined to undergo a series of smooth transitions.…
In recent years different explanations are provided for both an inflation and a recent acceleration in the expansion of the universe. In this Letter we show that a model of physical interest is the modification of general relativity with a…
Non-negligible dark energy density at high redshifts would indicate dark energy physics distinct from a cosmological constant or ``reasonable'' canonical scalar fields. Such dark energy can be constrained tightly through investigation of…
The acceleration of the universe is described as a dynamical effect of the extrinsic curvature of space-time. By extending previous results, the extrinsic curvature is regarded as an independent spin-2 field, determined by a set of…
Cosmic acceleration is widely believed to require either a source of negative pressure (i.e., dark energy), or a modification of gravity, which necessarily implies new degrees of freedom beyond those of Einstein gravity. In this paper we…
Recent observations provide strong evidence that the universe is accelerating. This confronts theory with a severe challenge. Explanations of the acceleration within the framework of general relativity are plagued by difficulties. General…
The vacuum is filled with complex scalar fields, such as the Higgs field. These fields serve as order parameters for superfluidity (quantum phase coherence over macroscopic distances), making the entire universe a superfluid. We review a…
In creating his gravitational field equations Einstein unjustifiedly assumed that inertial mass, and its energy equivalent, is a source of gravity. Denying this assumption allows modifying the field equations to a form in which a positive…
Recent astrophysical observations indicate that the universe is composed of a large amount of dark energy (DE) responsible for an accelerated expansion of the universe, along with a sizeable amount of cold dark matter (CDM), responsible for…
Recent astronomical observations indicate that the Universe is presently almost flat and undergoing a period of accelerated expansion. Basing on Einstein's general relativity all these observations can be explained by the hypothesis of a…
Rising to Mach, the problem of establishing the unity of the physical essence of the Universe on all space-time scales of its evolution is, apparently, one of the main problems in contemporary epistemology. The issues are primarily related…