The scaling evolution of the cosmological constant

Abstract

In quantum field theory the parameters of the vacuum action are subject to renormalization group running. In particular, the "cosmological constant" is not a constant in a quantum field theory context, still less should be zero. In this paper we continue with previous work, and derive the particle contributions to the running of the cosmological and gravitational constants in the framework of the Standard Model in curved space-time. At higher energies the calculation is performed in a sharp cut off approximation. We assess, in two different frameworks, whether the scaling dependences of the cosmological and gravitational constants spoil primordial nucleosynthesis. Finally, the cosmological implications of the running of the cosmological constant are discussed. © SISSA/ISAS 2002.