Related papers: The Case for a Positive Cosmological Lambda-term
A time-varying cosmological "constant" Lambda is consistent with Einstein's equation, provided matter and/or radiation is created or destroyed to compensate for it. Supposing an empty primordial universe endowed with a very large…
While low-z Type Ia supernovae are used to measure the present rate of expansion of the Universe, high-z Type Ia measure its variation due to the cosmic matter-energy content. Results from those determinations imply a low matter density…
Some remarkable examples of alternative cosmological theories are reviewed here, ranging from a compilation of variations on the Standard Model through the more distant quasi-steady-state cosmology, plasma cosmology, or universe models as a…
We have critically compared different approaches to the cosmological constant problem, which is at the edge of elementary particle physics and cosmology. This problem is deeply connected with the difficulties formulating a theory of quantum…
We have shown that the varying physical constant model is consistent with the recently published variational approach wherein Einstein equations are modified to include the variation of the speed of light c, gravitational constant G and…
We discussed the dynamics of cosmological models in which the cosmological constant term is a time dependent function through the scale factor $a(t)$, Hubble function $H(t)$, Ricci scalar $R(t)$ and scalar field $\phi(t)$. We considered…
We advance the viewpoint that only relevant modes of the vacuum fluctuations, namely, with wavelengths conditioned by the size, homogeneity, geometry and topology of the Universe, do contribute into the cosmological constant. A formula is…
We demonstrate that creation of dark-matter particles at a constant rate implies the existence of a cosmological term that decays linearly with the Hubble rate. We discuss the cosmological model that arises in this context and test it…
In many interesting models, including superstring theories, a negative vacuum energy is predicted. Although this effect is usually regarded as undesirable from a cosmological point of view, we show that this can be the basis for a new…
While the standard, six-parameter, spatially flat $\Lambda$CDM model has been highly successful, certain anomalies in the cosmic microwave background bring out a tension between this model and observations. The statistical significance of…
The cosmological constant $\Lambda$ used to be a freedom in Einstein's theory of general relativity, where one had a proclivity to set it to zero purely for convenience. The signs of $\Lambda$ or $\Lambda$ being zero would describe…
Based on our previous attempt, we propose a better way to understand a small but nonzero cosmological constant, as indicated by a number of recent observational studies. We re-examine the assumptions of our model of two scalar fields,…
This is a review of the physics and cosmology of the cosmological constant. Focusing on recent developments, I present a pedagogical overview of cosmology in the presence of a cosmological constant, observational constraints on its…
Observational constraints guide one forcefully to examine models in which the matter density is substantially less than critical density. Particularly noteworthy are those which are consistent with inflation. For these models, microwave…
This presentation reports on first evidence for a low-mass-density/positive-cosmological-constant universe that will expand forever, based on observations of a set of 40 high-redshift supernovae. The experimental strategy, data sets, and…
We discuss a mechanism which generates a mass term for a scalar field in an expanding universe. The mass of this field turns out to be generated by the cosmological constant and can be naturally small if protected by a conformal symmetry…
Cosmology is entering a very exciting time in its history, when a wealth of cutting-edge experiments are all starting to collect data, or about to. These experiments aim at addressing some of the most intriguing questions in fundamental…
We propose an approach to explaining why naive large quantum fluctuations are not the right estimate for the cosmological constant. We argue that the universe is in a superposition of many vacua, in such a way that the resulting…
Supernovae observations strongly support the presence of a cosmological constant, but its value, which we will call apparent, is normally determined assuming that the universe can be accurately described by a homogeneous model. Even in the…
The cosmological constant $\Lambda$ is a measure of the energy density of the vacuum. Therefore properties of the energy of the system in the metastable vacuum state reflect properties of $\Lambda = \Lambda(t)$. We analyze properties of the…