Quantum Generation of Dark Energy

Abstract

We present a type of dark energy models where the particles of dark energy phi are dynamically produced via a quantum transition at very low energies. The scale where the transition takes places depends on the strength g of the interaction between phi and a relativistic field varphi. We show that a g \simeq 10^{-12} gives a generation scale E_gen simeq eV with a cross section sigma simeq 1 pb close to the WIMPs cross section sigma_w simeq pb at decoupling. The number density n_phi of the ϕparticles are a source term in the eq. of motion of phi and it generates the scalar potential v(phi) responsible for the late time acceleration of our universe. Since the appearance of phi may be at very low scales, close to present time, the cosmological coincidence problem can be explained simply due to the size of the coupling constant. We unify dark energy with inflation in terms of a single scalar field phi, and we use the same potential v for inflation and dark energy. However, after inflation phi decays completely and reheats the universe at a scale E_RH propto h^2 m_Pl, where h is the coupling between the SM particles and varphi. The field phi disappears from the spectrum during, from reheating until its re-generation, and therefore it does not interfere with the standard decelerating radiation/matter cosmological model allowing for a successful unification scheme. The same interaction term that gives rise to the inflaton decay accounts for the late time re-generation of phi. We present a simple model where the strength of the g and h couplings are set by the inflation scale E_I with g=h^2 propto E_I/m_Pl giving a reheating scale E_RH propto E_I=100TeV and phi-generation scale E_gen propto E_I^2/m_pl=eV << E_RH.