Non-parametric reconstruction of interaction in the cosmic dark sector

Abstract

The possibility of a non-gravitational interaction between the dark matter and the dark energy has been reconstructed using some recent datasets. The crucial aspect is that the interaction is not parametrized at the outset, but rather reconstructed directly from the data in a non-parametric way. The Cosmic Chronometer Hubble data, the Pantheon Supernova compilation of CANDELS and CLASH Multy-Cycle Treasury programs obtained by the HST, and the Baryon Acoustic Oscillation Hubble data have been considered in this work. The widely accepted Gaussian Process is used for the reconstruction. The results clearly indicate that a no interaction scenario is quite a possibility. Also, the interaction, if any, is not really significant at the present epoch. The direction of the flow of energy is clearly from the dark energy to the dark matter which is consistent with the thermodynamic requirement.

19 pages, 12 sets of figures, Accepted for publication in Phys. Rev. D