A new recipe for $\Lambda$CDM

Abstract

It is well known that a canonical scalar field is able to describe either dark matter or dark energy but not both. We demonstrate that a non-canonical scalar field can describe both dark matter and dark energy within a unified setting. We consider the simplest extension of the canonical Lagrangian ${\cal L} \propto X^\alpha - V(\phi)$ where $\alpha \geq 1$ and $V$ is a sufficiently flat potential. In this case the kinetic term in the Lagrangian behaves just like a perfect fluid, whereas the potential term mimicks the cosmological constant. For very large values, $\alpha \gg 1$, the equation of state of the kinetic term drops to zero and the expansion rate of the universe mimicks $\Lambda$CDM. The velocity of sound in this model, and the associated gravitational clustering, is sensitive to the value of $\alpha$. For very large values of $\alpha$ the clustering properties of our model resemble those of cold dark matter (CDM). But for smaller values of $\alpha$, gravitational clustering on small scales is suppressed, and our model has properties resembling those of warm dark matter (WDM). Therefore our non-canonical model has an interesting new property: while the background universe expands like $\Lambda$CDM, its clustering properties can resemble those of either cold or warm dark matter.