Constraining Quintessence Models with ISW-tSZ Cross-Correlations: A Comparative Analysis of Thawing, Tracker, and Scaling-Freezing Dynamics

TL;DR

This paper uses ISW-tSZ cross-correlation data to constrain different quintessence dark energy models, comparing their parameters and effectiveness against the standard $\\Lambda$CDM cosmology.

Contribution

It provides a comprehensive likelihood analysis of thawing, tracker, and scaling-freezing quintessence models using observational cross-correlation data, highlighting their differences and constraints.

Findings

Tracker model yields specific parameters with confidence intervals.

Thawing model with exponential potential fits data best among tested models.

tSZ and CIB parameters are tightly constrained, informing astrophysical foregrounds.

Abstract

We present constraints on quintessence dark energy models using the observational detection of the Integrated Sachs-Wolfe (ISW)--thermal Sunyaev-Zeldovich (tSZ) cross-correlation dataset. Our analysis compares three classes of quintessence dynamics: thawing, tracker, and scaling-freezing with the standard $\Lambda$CDM cosmology. Through a comprehensive likelihood analysis, we derive best-fit values and 68\% confidence intervals for key cosmological parameters, finding $\Omega_{\rm m} = 0.322^{+0.027}_{-0.030}$ and $\sigma_8 = 0.735^{+0.045}_{-0.035}$ for $\Lambda$CDM, with deviations in alternative models consistent within $1\sigma$. For the thawing model, we consider an exponential potential with slope $\lambda = 0.736^{+0.270}_{-0.227}$, while for the tracker and scaling-freezing models, we use inverse axion-like and double exponential potentials, respectively. Observationally, the tracker model yields $n = 5.651^{+1.625}_{-1.604}$ and $f = 0.258^{+0.149}_{-0.096}$, and the scaling-freezing model gives $\lambda_1 = 0.405^{+0.293}_{-0.322}$ and $\lambda_2 = 23.226^{+7.975}_{-7.258}$. The dimensionless tSZ amplitude ($\widetilde{W}^{\rm SZ}$) and cosmic infrared background (CIB) parameters are tightly constrained across all models, providing additional insights into astrophysical foregrounds. Our results demonstrate the effectiveness of ISW--tSZ cross-correlations as a probe of dark energy dynamics, with the Thawing quintessence model yielding the lowest $\chi^2_{\rm min}$ among the tested scenarios, and highlight the need for future high-precision measurements to distinguish between quintessence models and $\Lambda$CDM.