• Accepted Paper

Dark Energy Survey year 6 results: Cosmological constraints from galaxy clustering and weak lensing

T. M. C. Abbott et al.

Phys. Rev. D - Accepted 2 November, 2026

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/nnlj-gyr2

Abstract

We present cosmology results combining galaxy clustering and weak gravitational lensing measured in the full six years (Y6) of observations by the Dark Energy Survey (DES) covering $5000deg^2$. We perform a large-scale structure analysis with galaxy samples defined from the final data extending to redshift range z≲2, using three two-point correlation functions (3$$2pt): (i) cosmic shear measuring correlations among the shapes of 140 million source galaxies, (ii) auto-correlations of the spatial distribution of 9 million lens galaxies, and (iii) galaxy galaxy lensing from the cross-correlation between lens positions and source shapes. We perform the analysis under a rigorous blinding protocol to prevent confirmation biases. We model the data in flat and wCDM cosmologies. We find consistent cosmological results from subsets of the three two-point correlation functions. Their combined analysis yields $S_8\equiv \sigma_8 (\Omega_{\rm m}/0.3)^{0.5} = 0.789^{+0.012}_{-0.012}$ and matter density $\Omega_{\rm m} = 0.333^{+0.023}_{-0.028}$ in ΛCDM (68% CL), where σ8 is the clustering amplitude. The factor of two improvement in constraining power in the $\Omega_{\rm m}$–σ8 plane relative to DES Year 3 is due to higher source number density, extended redshift range, and improved modeling. These constraints show a (full-space) parameter difference of 1.8σ from a combination of cosmic microwave background (CMB) primary anisotropy datasets from {} 2018, ACT-DR6, and SPT-3G DR1. Projected only into S8 the difference is 2.6σ. In wCDM the Y6 3$$2pt results yield S8=0.782−0.020+0.021, $\Omega_{\rm m} = 0.325^{+0.032}_{-0.035}$, and dark energy equation-of-state parameter w=−1.12−0.20+0.26. For the first time, we combine all DES dark-energy probes: 3$$2pt, SNe Ia, BAO and Clusters. In this combination yields a 2.8σ parameter difference from the CMB. When combining DES 3$2ptwithothermostconstraininglow−redshiftdatasets(DESIDR2BAO,DESSNeIa,SPTclusters),wefinda2.3$ parameter difference with CMB. A joint fit of Y6 3$2pt,CMB,andthoselow−z$ datasets produces the tightest ΛCDM constraints to date: S8=0.806−0.007+0.006, $\Omega_{\rm m} = 0.302^{+0.003}_{-0.003}$, h=0.683−0.002+0.003, and ∑mν<0.14 eV (95% CL). In wCDM, this dataset combination yields w=−0.981−0.022+0.021, with no significant preference over ΛCDM.

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