Revealing Limitation in the Standard Cosmological Model: A Redshift-Dependent Hubble Constant from Fast Radio Bursts

Abstract

A major issue in contemporary cosmology is the persistent discrepancy, known as the Hubble tension, between the Hubble constant ($H_0$) estimates from local measurements and those inferred from early-Universe observations under the standard $\Lambda$ cold dark matter ($\Lambda$CDM) paradigm. Recent advances have identified fast radio bursts (FRBs), a class of extragalactic phenomena observable at considerable redshifts, as a promising observational tool for probing late-time cosmology. In this study, we incorporate two complementary methodologies, machine learning algorithms and Bayesian analysis, on a set of localized FRBs to rigorously test the consistency of the $\Lambda$CDM model at late cosmic epochs. Our results reveal a statistically significant redshift-dependent variation of $H_0$ when using separate priors on baryon density parameters $\Omega_\mathrm{b}$ or $\Omega_\mathrm{b}h^2$, indicating contradiction to the core postulate of $\Lambda$CDM. However, when the priors are combined, this redshift dependence disappears, yielding a consistent estimate of $H_0$. We further validate that the redshift dependency of $H_0$ can be removed within the more flexible framework of $w_0w_a$CDM model even without combining the priors. These findings highlight that the redshift evolution of $H_0$ is not merely an artifact of the standard model but an indication of a deeper inadequacy in the $\Lambda$CDM model, supporting the need for a more flexible cosmological framework.