Related papers: Shadow vacuum alignment and dark energy
Phantom scalar theories are widely considered in cosmology, but rarely at the quantum level, where they give rise to negative-energy ghost particles. These cause decay of the vacuum into gravitons and photons, violating observational…
We suggest an alternative framework for interpreting the current state of the visible universe. Our approach is based on a dynamical ``Cosmological Constant'' and the starting point is that a decaying vacuum produces matter. As we point…
We analyse three cosmological scenarios with interaction in the dark sector, which are particular cases of a general expression for the energy flux from vacuum to matter. In the first case the interaction leads to a transition from an…
We analyse theories that do not have a de Sitter vacuum and cannot lead to slow-roll quintessence, but which nevertheless support a transient era of accelerated cosmological expansion due to interactions between a scalar $\phi$ and either a…
We propose a phenomenological framework in which the observed late-time dark-energy sector is interpreted as the intrinsic tension of space itself. Motivated by recent observational hints that the dark-energy equation of state may exhibit…
Persisting tensions between high-redshift and low-redshift cosmological observations suggest the dark energy sector of the Universe might be more complex than the positive cosmological constant of the $\Lambda$CDM model. Motivated by string…
A huge amount of good quality data converges towards the picture of a spatially flat universe undergoing the today observed phase of accelerated expansion. This new observational trend is commonly addressed as Precision Cosmology. Despite…
To explain the currently observed accelerated expansion of the universe, a large number of different theoretical models are presently being discussed. In one way or another, all of these contain `new physics', though at different levels.…
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…
We present evidence that a special class of gravitationally-coupled hidden sectors, in which conformal invariance is dynamically broken in a controlled way, exhibit the properties of dark energy. Such quantum field theories may appear while…
It is well known that global symmetries protect local supersymmetry and a zero value for the cosmological constant in no--scale supergravity. The breakdown of these symmetries, which ensure the vanishing of the vacuum energy density,…
By studying the present cosmological data, particularly on CMB, SNeIA and LSS, we find that the future fate of the universe, for simple linear models of the dark energy equation-of-state, can vary between the extremes of (I) a divergence of…
We investigate the dynamics and cosmological implications of dark energy (DE), modeled as a scalar field with a hyperbolic tangent potential that induces a smooth shift in the effective cosmological constant (CC), encompassing transitions…
The high-quality cosmological data, which became available in the last decade, have thrusted upon us a rather preposterous composition for the universe which poses one of the greatest challenges theoretical physics has ever faced: the…
We construct a class of 4D `yoga' (naturally relaxed) models for which the gravitational response of heavy-particle vacuum energies is strongly suppressed. The models contain three ingredients: (i) a relaxation mechanism, (ii) a very…
A huge amount of good quality astrophysical data converges towards the picture of a spatially flat universe undergoing the today observed phase of accelerated expansion. This new observational trend is commonly addressed as Precision…
We investigate Dark Energy by associating it with vacuum energy or Cosmological constant ${\Lambda}$ which is taken to be dynamic in nature. Our approach is phenomenological and falls within the domain of variable-$\Lambda$ Cosmology.…
I review the dark energy solutions by a very light pseudoscalar called "quintessential axion". For the explicit breaking terms, we consider both the global anomaly U(1)$_{\rm global}\times$SU(2)$_W^2$ and the potential $\Delta V$. At the…
We consider a formalism to describe the false-vacuum decay of a scalar field in gauge theories in non-perturbative regimes. We find that the larger the gauge coupling with respect to the self-coupling of the scalar, the shallower the local…
We propose a new scenario for the onset of positive acceleration of our Universe based on symmetry breaking in coupled dark energy scalar field model. In a symmetry breaking process where the scalar field rolls down its own potential, the…