Scalar Field
Quintessence is a scalar field whose equation of state wq, defined as the ratio of its pressure pq and its density q, is given by the potential energy and a kinetic term:
- .
Hence, Quintessence is dynamic, and generally has a density and equation of state that varies with time. By contrast, a Cosmological Constant is static, with a fixed energy density and wq = −1.
Read more about this topic: Quintessence (physics)
Famous quotes containing the word field:
“I would say that deconstruction is affirmation rather than questioning, in a sense which is not positive: I would distinguish between the positive, or positions, and affirmations. I think that deconstruction is affirmative rather than questioning: this affirmation goes through some radical questioning, but it is not questioning in the field of analysis.”
—Jacques Derrida (b. 1930)