Bohmian quantum cosmology from the Wheeler-DeWitt equation
We construct a Bohmian quantum cosmological model for a spatially flat Friedmann-Robertson-Walker universe filled with a single scalar field whose potential provides a unified description of cold dark matter and dark energy at the background level. Starting from the Einstein-Hilbert action supplemented by a scalar field, we derive the minisuperspace Lagrangian and the associated canonical Hamiltonian formulation. By means of a nontrivial canonical transformation, the minisuperspace dynamics is mapped into that of a two-dimensional hyperbolic oscillator with a fixed frequency ratio, rendering the Wheeler-DeWitt equation exactly solvable by separation of variables. The resulting Wheeler-DeWitt solutions are expressed in terms of parabolic cylinder functions and are parametrised by a continuous separation constant, reflecting the constrained nature of the theory and the absence of a standard Schrödinger time parameter. Adopting the de Broglie-Bohm formulation, we derive deterministic guidance equations in minisuperspace and construct a well-defined Bohmian Hubble parameter directly in terms of the pilot-wave phase. Finally, we present a Wheeler-DeWitt-derived toy wave function for which the Bohmian trajectories and the associated cosmological expansion history can be obtained analytically, reproducing the late-time ΛCDM behaviour while exhibiting quantum modifications at earlier epochs.
Authors
- Charalampos Tzerefos (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7489-1940)
- Gerasimos Kouniatalis (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0004-5593-3614)
- Spyros Basilakos
- Emmanuel N. Saridakis
Institutions
- University of Science and Technology of China (CN)
- National Technical University of Athens (GR)
- National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (GR)
- Academy of Athens (GR)
- Universidad Católica del Norte (CL)
- National Observatory of Athens (GR)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Physics Letters B
- Published
- 2026-03-07
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1016/j.physletb.2026.140339
- Primary Topic
- Cosmology and Gravitation Theories
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.00