Related papers: Can background cosmology hold the key for modified…
We consider f(R) modified gravity theories in the metric variation formalism and attempt to reconstruct the function f(R) by demanding a background LCDM cosmology. In particular we impose the following requirements: a. A background cosmic…
Dark energy cosmology is considered in a modified Gauss-Bonnet model of gravity with and without a scalar field. It is shown that these generalizations of General Relativity endow it with a very rich cosmological structure: it may naturally…
The onset of dark energy domination depends on the particular gravitational theory driving the cosmic evolution. Model independent techniques are crucial to test both the present $\Lambda$CDM cosmological paradigm and alternative theories,…
Viable models of modified gravity designed to produce cosmic acceleration at the current epoch, closely mimic the $\Lambda$CDM model at the level of background cosmology. However, this degeneracy is generically broken at the level of linear…
Modified gravity has attracted much attention over the last few years and remains a potential candidate for dark energy. In particular, the so-called viable f(R) gravity theories, which are able to both recover General Relativity (GR) and…
Modified gravity, known as $f(R)$ gravity, has presently been applied to Cosmology as a realistic alternative to dark energy. For this kind of gravity the expansion of the Universe may accelerate while containing only baryonic and cold dark…
Modified theories of gravity have received a renewed interest due to their ability to account for the cosmic acceleration. In order to satisfy the solar system tests of gravity, these theories need to include a screening mechanism that…
Modified Gravity (MOG) has been used successfully to explain the rotation curves of galaxies, the motion of galaxy clusters, the Bullet Cluster, and cosmological observations without the use of dark matter or Einstein's cosmological…
We review various modified gravities considered as gravitational alternative for dark energy. Specifically, we consider the versions of $f(R)$, $f(G)$ or $f(R,G)$ gravity, model with non-linear gravitational coupling or string-inspired…
We develop the reconstruction program for the number of modified gravities: scalar-tensor theory, $f(R)$, $F(G)$ and string-inspired, scalar-Gauss-Bonnet gravity. The known (classical) universe expansion history is used for the explicit and…
This thesis focuses on late-time cosmic acceleration within modified theories of gravity, using various observational data sets and statistical analysis. The Universe is assumed to be spatially homogeneous and isotropic and is described by…
We investigate f(R) theories of gravity within the Palatini approach and show how one can determine the expansion history, H(a), for an arbitrary choice of f(R). As an example, we consider cosmological constraints on such theories arising…
We use the effective field theory of dark energy to explore the space of modified gravity models which are capable of driving the present cosmic acceleration. We identify five universal functions of cosmic time that are enough to describe a…
In this contribution to the conference "Beyond Einstein: Historical Perspectives on Geometry, Gravitation and Cosmology in the Twentieth Century", we give a critical status report of attempts to explain the late accelerated expansion of the…
We explore nonlocally modified models of gravity, inspired by quantum loop corrections, as a mechanism for explaining current cosmic acceleration. These theories enjoy two major advantages: they allow a delayed response to cosmic events,…
Standard cosmological data analyses typically constrain simple phenomenological dark-energy parameters, for example the present-day value of the equation of state parameter, $w_0$, and its variation with scale factor, $w_a$. However,…
We investigate the modified gravity theories in terms of the effective dark energy models. We compare the cosmic expansion history and the linear growth in different models. We also study the evolution of linear cosmological perturbations…
The accelerated expansion of the Universe remains one of the central open problems in modern cosmology. While the $\Lambda$CDM model successfully describes a wide range of observations, the physical nature of dark energy is still unknown,…
Several models based on General Relativity and Modified Gravity aim to reproduce the observed universe with precision comparable to the flat-$\Lambda$CDM cosmological model. In this study, we investigate the consistency of some of these…
All $f(R)$ modified gravity theories are conformally identical to models of quintessence in which matter is coupled to dark energy with a strong coupling. This coupling induces a cosmological evolution radically different from standard…