Dark energy theories have developed to explain the fairly recently discovered accelerating expansion of the Universe. Many of those theories exploit dark energy (an unknown) for an explanation. Those theories often postulate that the proton to electron mass ratio, which is a fundamental constant, had a different value in the early Universe. Thompson used the new Hubble ultra-deep field photos to show that the proton to electron mass ratio hasn't changed.
Einstein initially developed a theory of a constant cosmological force that would cancel out the effects of gravity that should, if it were not neutralized, draw the mass of the Universe toward a collapse and crunch to a singularity like that hypothesized at the start of Universe (1). Dark energy is regarded as being that force offsetting and overcoming gravity at large scales yet theories about a particular form it might take appear incorrect.
http://map.gsfc.nasa.gov/universe/uni_expansion.html
image credit: N.A.S.A./Ann Field
http://map.gsfc.nasa.gov/universe/uni_expansion.html
image credit: N.A.S.A./Ann Field
Einstein's cosmological constant was good while people believed the Universe was in something of a steady state. When Edwin Hubble observed that the Universe (1) is expanding Einstein decried his own cosmological constant saying that it was a booboo. For some reason it didn't occur to anyone back in the day that a cosmological constant was still needed to make the Universe (1) expand even more.
Rather than being a form of energy-another particle, the cosmological constant could have any of a zoo of theoretical causes from extra dimensions changing relationships or size to probability entanglement quantum structures without spacetime.
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