Interacting dark sector: Lagrangian formulation based on two canonical scalar fields

Abstract

We study in some detail an interacting cosmological model based on two canonical scalar fields starting from a Lagrangian description. Contrary to other more phenomenological approaches where non-relativistic matter and dark energy are cosmological perfect fluids, and where a source term is added by hand at the level of the continuity equations, here within Einstein's theory we model the dark sector, which dominates the evolution of the universe, as two minimally coupled scalar fields, out of which the first play the role of dark matter and the second plays the role of dark energy. We compute both the deceleration parameter and the distance modulus versus red-shift, and we demonstrate that the model is capable of explaining the current cosmic acceleration. We find that a negative coupling constant implies two distinctive features, which comprise two robust predictions of the model studied in the present work, and which are the following: a) a transient acceleration phase, and b) a collapsing Universe, or in other words an initial expansion which is followed by a contraction leading eventually to a Big-Crunch.