Interaction between dark energy and dark matter: observational constraints from OHD, BAO, CMB and SNe Ia

TL;DR

This study uses recent cosmological observations to constrain models of interaction between dark energy and dark matter, finding small coupling parameters and potential implications for the coincidence problem.

Contribution

It provides observational constraints on two forms of dark sector interaction, revealing sign-dependent preferences and implications for the coincidence problem.

Findings

Small coupling parameter |γ| ≈ 10^{-2}

Positive γ preferred with dust matter interaction

Interaction may alleviate the coincidence problem

Abstract

In order to test if there is energy transfer between dark energy and dark matter, we investigate cosmological constraints on two forms of nontrivial interaction between the dark matter sector and the sector responsible for the acceleration of the universe, in light of the newly revised observations including OHD, CMB, BAO and SNe Ia. More precisely, we find the same tendencies for both phenomenological forms of the interaction term $Q=3\gamma H\rho$, i.e., the parameter $\gamma$ to be a small number, $|\gamma|\approx 10^{-2}$. However, concerning the sign of the interaction parameter, we observe that $\gamma>0$ when the interaction between dark sectors is proportional to the energy density of dust matter, whereas the negative coupling ($\gamma<0$) is preferred by observations when the interaction term is proportional to dark energy density. We further discuss two possible explanations to this incompatibility and apply a quantitative criteria to judge the severity of the coincidence problem. Results suggest that the $\gamma_m$IDE model with a positive coupling may alleviate the coincidence problem, since its coincidence index $C$ is smaller than that for the $\gamma_d$IDE model, the interacting quintessence and phantom models by four orders of magnitude.