Cosmology with self-adjusting vacuum energy density from a renormalization group fixed point

Cosmologies with a time dependent Newton constant and cosmological constant are investigated. The scale dependence of G and A is governed by a set of renormalization group equations which is coupled to Einstein's equation in a consistent way. The existence of an infrared attractive renormalization group fixed point is postulated, and the cosmological implications of this assumption are explored. It turns out that in the late Universe the vacuum energy density is automatically adjusted so as to equal precisely the matter energy density, and that the deceleration parameter approaches q = -1/4. This scenario might explain the data from recent observations of high redshift type la supernovae and the cosmic microwave background radiation without introducing a quintessence field. (C) 2002 Published by Elsevier Science B.V.