Dark-energy equation of state: how far can we go from \Lambda?

Equation of state parameter plays a significant role for guessing the real nature of dark energy. In the present paper polytropic equation of state $p=\omega\rho^n$ is chosen for some of the kinematical $\Lambda$-models viz., $\Lambda \sim (\dot a/a)^2$, $\Lambda \sim \ddot a/a$ and $\Lambda \sim \rho$. Although in dust cases ($\omega=0$) closed form solutions show no dependency on the polytropic index $n$, but in non-dust situations some new possibilities are opened up inclu...

The accelerated expansion of the universe has now been confirmed by several independent observations including those of high redshift type Ia supernovae, and the cosmic microwave background combined with the large scale structure of the Universe. In this work we introduce families of analytical solutions for the scale factor different from the current literature. The knowledge of the scale factor behavior might shed some light on these questions since the entire evolution of ...

In the present work we suggest new and more generalized parameterizations for the Equation of State, EoS, of dark energy, maintaining the basic structure of two-parameters CPL-model, but covering both the past and the future of the cosmic history, without divergences and consistently with the current observational data. We propose two generalizations, starting from the extended MZp-model by Ma and Zhang, 2011, the $\xi$MZp-model and the DFp-model. The potential advantages of ...

A significant observational effort has been directed to unveil the nature of the so-called dark energy. However, given the large number of theoretical possibilities, it is possible that such a task cannot be performed on the basis only of the observational data. In this article we discuss some thermodynamic properties of this energy component by assuming that its constituents are massless quanta with a general time-dependent equation-of-state parameter $\omega(z)=\omega_0 + \...

While there is mounting evidence in all fronts of experimental cosmology for a non-vanishing dark energy component in the Universe, we are still far away from understanding its ultimate nature. A fundamental cosmological constant, Lambda, is the most natural candidate, but many dynamical mechanisms to generate an effective Lambda have been devised which postulate the existence of a peculiar scalar field (so-called quintessence, and generalizations thereof). These models are e...

We focus on the analysis of three inequivalent equations of state of geometric dark energy in $f(R)$ cosmology that have been considered in the past and discuss their differences, advantages and drawbacks.

Some issues of the cosmological constant or dark energy are briefly reviewed. There are an increasing number of observations that constrain the equation of state of dark energy more stringently and favor the time-independent cosmological constant. Then a plausible model of dark energy would be a theory with degenerate perturbative vacua in which its origin is explained by a nonperturbative effect so that, unlike quintessence, k-essence etc., it is separable from the perturbat...

The formalism of dark energy based on modeling speed of sound as a function of equation of state parameter is elaborated. A specific model which allows detailed study of cosmological constant boundary crossing is introduced and analytical solutions for the model dynamics are obtained. It is shown how in specific parameter regimes dark energy can be a transient phenomenon. It is further demonstrated how the model reproduces specific features of recent fits of dark energy $w(z)...

The present status of our knowledge about the dark matter and dark energy is reviewed. Bounds on the content of cold and hot dark matter from cosmological observations are discussed in some detail. I also review current bounds on the physical properties of dark energy, mainly its equation of state and effective speed of sound.

We discuss the phenomenology of the dark energy in first order perturbation theory, demonstrating that the dark energy cannot be fully constrained unless the dark matter is found, and that there are two functions that characterise the observational properties of the dark sector for cosmological probes. We argue that measuring these two functions should be an important goal for observational cosmology in the next decades.