Related papers: Avoiding Dark Energy with 1/R Modifications of Gra…
We present a simple cosmological model in which a single, non-minimally coupled scalar field with a quartic potential is responsible for both inflation at early times and acceleration at late times. Little or no fine tuning is needed to…
The cosmographic technique is a powerful model-independent tool for distinguishing between competing cosmological scenarios. The key strengths and weaknesses of standard cosmography are discussed in view of healing the convergence problem…
We discuss observational consequences of f(R) dark energy scenarios that satisfy local gravity constraints (LGC) as well as conditions of the cosmological viability. The model we study is given by m(r)=C(-r-1)^p (C>0, p>1) with…
The field equations in $f(R)$ gravity derived from the Palatini variational principle and formulated in the Einstein conformal frame yield a cosmological term which varies with time. Moreover, they break the conservation of the…
The acceleration of the universe can be explained either through dark energy or through the modification of gravity on large scales. In this paper we investigate modified gravity models and compare their observable predictions with dark…
Scalar-tensor theories of gravity that embrace conformal coupling to the scalar curvature are the focal point of cosmology on discussions of inflation and late-time accelerating universe. Although there exists a stringent nucleo-synthesis…
This paper reports a Ricci-Gauss-Bonnet (RGB) dark energy model within the framework of Ho\v{r}ava-Lifshitz cosmology and presents a scalar-field reconstruction of the effective dark energy sector. In a spatially flat FRW background with a…
We derive the equations of linear cosmological perturbations for the general Lagrangian density $f (R,\phi, X)/2+L_c$, where $R$ is a Ricci scalar, $\phi$ is a scalar field, and $X=-(\nabla \phi)^2/2$ is a field kinetic energy. We take into…
Most existing theories of dark energy and/or modified gravity, involving a scalar degree of freedom, can be conveniently described within the framework of the Effective Theory of Dark Energy, based on the unitary gauge where the scalar…
We analytically and numerically show that the acceleration of the cosmic expansion could be explained by a Quadratic Gravity model which is known to be able to trigger sufficient inflation, with neither negative pressure matter nor…
We generalize tensor-scalar theories of gravitation by the introduction of an abnormally weighting type of energy. This theory of tensor-scalar anomalous gravity is based on a relaxation of the weak equivalence principle that is now…
The cosmological constant is the most economical candidate for dark energy. No other approach really alleviates the difficulties faced by the cosmological constant because, in all other attempts to model the dark energy, one still has to…
The accelerated expansion of the universe implies the existence of an energy contribution known as dark energy. Associated with the cosmological constant in the standard model of cosmology, the nature of this dark energy is still unknown.…
An argument is made to show that the singularity in the General Theory of Relativity (GTR) is the expression of a non-Machian feature. It can be avoided with a scale-invariant dynamical theory, a property lacking in GTR. It is further…
A cosmological model that aims at solving the coincidence problem should show that dark energy and dark matter follow the same scaling solution from some time onward. At the same time, the model should contain a sufficiently long…
In this thesis we are interested in the problem of dark energy in cosmology. In particular, we consider the possibility that this effect is due to an infrared non-local modification of the theory of General Relativity. Inspired by massive…
This article reviews scalar-tensor theories characterized by a Lagrangian that, despite the presence of second order derivatives, contain a single scalar degree of freedom. These theories, known as Degenerate Higher-Order Scalar-Tensor…
The effective evolution of an inhomogeneous universe model in any theory of gravitation may be described in terms of spatially averaged variables. In Einstein's theory, restricting attention to scalar variables, this evolution can be…
The issues of quintessence and cosmic acceleration can be discussed in the framework of $F(R, {\cal G})$ theories of gravity where $R$ is the Ricci curvature scalar and ${\cal G}$ is the Gauss-Bonnet topological invariant. It is possible to…
We assume the cosmological dark sector to consist of pressureless matter and holographic dark energy with a cutoff length proportional to the Ricci scale. The requirement of separate energy-momentum conservation of the components is shown…