Beyond the Cosmological Constant: Breaking the Geometric Degeneracy of $ f(Q) $ cosmology via Redshift-Space Distortions

Abstract

We present a rigorous theoretical and observational analysis of the Hybrid $ f(Q) $ class of models by including the late-time modifying $ 1/Q $ term. After deriving strict viability conditions from the analytical expansion history, we show that preserving early-universe structure formation dictates that the linear coupling be exactly unity. This fixes the background of the Hybrid model into a geometric degeneracy with $ \Lambda $CDM which is confirmed explicitly through MCMC analysis with the latest background-only probes. The physical novelty of this model is manifest in the perturbation sector, where the geometric coupling breaks the background degeneracy and induces a late-time suppression of the effective gravitational constant $ G_{eff} < G_N $. Consequently, the inclusion of RSD data reveals an amplitude compensation mechanism, by which the matching of the signature $ f\sigma_8 $ of the data causes the clustering amplitude $ \sigma_8 $ to inflate under weaker gravity. Statistical model comparison through AIC/DIC demonstrates that incorporating growth data yields a moderate to weak preference for the Hybrid model keeping the background cosmology intact. This provides a physically bounded alternative to $ \Lambda $CDM with a falsifiable signature in the large scale structure, directly testable by the next generation of galaxy surveys.