New model suggests partner anti-universe could explain accelerated expansion without the need for dark energy [View all]

JUNE 4, 2024 DIALOG

Editors' notes

by Naman Kumar



A depiction of a universe-antiuniverse pair. Credit: Wikipedia, CC

The accelerated expansion of the present universe, believed to be driven by a mysterious dark energy, is one of the greatest puzzles in our understanding of the cosmos. The standard model of cosmology called Lambda-CDM, explains this expansion as a cosmological constant in Einstein's field equations. However, the cosmological constant itself lacks a complete theoretical understanding, particularly regarding its very small positive value.

To explain the accelerated expansion, physicists have proposed alternative explanations such as quintessence and modified gravity theories, including scalar-tensor-vector gravity. Additionally, explanations beyond four dimensions, like the braneworld scenarios in the Dvali-Gabadadze-Porrati (DGP) model, modify gravity at large distances due to the effect of a higher-dimensional bulk on our four-dimensional brane, and variable brane tension.

My new model
In my work, I propose another model to explain the present accelerated expansion of the universe. Unlike existing models, this does not require any form of dark energy or modified gravity approaches. However, there is a price to pay: we need a partner anti-universe whose time flow is oppositely related to our universe.

There are strong arguments supporting this concept. From a quantum theory perspective, it is natural for the universe to be created in pairs. Recently, Boyle et al proposed that the universe does not spontaneously violate CPT (Charge, Parity, and Time reversal symmetry), but rather, the universe after the Big Bang is the CPT image of the universe before it, pointing towards a partner anti-universe.

More:
https://phys.org/news/2024-06-partner-anti-universe-expansion-dark.html