Beyond $\Lambda$CDM with Low and High Redshift Data: Implications for Dark Energy

TL;DR

This study reconstructs the universe's expansion history using low redshift data, revealing a potential negative dark energy density and implications for cosmological models beyond Lambda-CDM.

Contribution

It introduces a model-independent reconstruction of dark energy density across redshifts, suggesting a negative cosmological constant component.

Findings

Dark energy density has a minimum at certain redshifts.

Dark energy at the minimum is negative.

Implications for models with negative cosmological constant.

Abstract

Assuming that the Universe at higher redshifts (z \sim 4 and beyond) is consistent with LCDM model as constrained by the Planck measurements, we reanalyze the low redshift cosmological data to reconstruct the Hubble parameter as a function of redshift. This enables us to address the H_0 and other tensions between low z observations and high z Planck measurement from CMB. From the reconstructed H(z), we compute the energy density for the "dark energy" sector of the Universe as a function of redshift without assuming a specific model for dark energy. We find that the dark energy density has a minimum for certain redshift range and that the value of dark energy at this minimum is negative. This behavior can most simply be described by a negative cosmological constant plus an evolving dark energy component. We discuss possible theoretical and observational implications of such a scenario.