Confronting quantum-corrected teleparallel cosmology with observations

Reginald Christian Bernardo, Che-Yu Chen, Jackson Levi Said, Yu-Hsien Kung 2022 JCAP 04 (2022) 052  

It has been shown that at the semi-classical order, gravitational theories with quantum fluctuations can be effectively recast as modified theories of gravity with non-minimal gravity-matter couplings. We proceed from an observational perspective and see whether such quantum fluctuations can leave imprints on the late Universe. Within the teleparallel formulation, we investigate a representative model in this general class of modified gravitational theories inlaid with quantum fluctuations, and determine the cosmological parameters by using compiled late-time data sets. Furthermore, we assess the statistical significance of such quantum corrections compared to the standard cosmological model. The results mildly favor the inclusion of quantum corrections with a negative density parameter supporting a phantom-like dark energy. This edge is not sufficient to rule out either models but it supports the consideration of quantum corrections in a cosmological setting.