5th Week Paper List
Marco Cirelli, Mario Kadastik, Martti Raidal, Alessandro Strumia
Taking into account spins, we classify all two-body non-relativistic Dark Matter annihilation channels to the allowed polarization states of Standard Model particles, computing the energy spectra of the stable final-state particles relevant for indirect DM detection. We study the DM masses, annihilation channels and cross sections that can reproduce the PAMELA indications of an e+ excess consistently with the PAMELA p-bar data and the ATIC/PPB-BETS e++e- data. From the PAMELA data alone, two solutions emerge: (i) either the DM particles that annihilate into W,Z,h must be heavier than about 10 TeV or (ii) the DM must annihilate only into leptons. Thus in both cases a DM particle compatible with the PAMELA excess seems to have quite unexpected properties. The solution (ii) implies a peak in the e++e- energy spectrum, which, indeed, seems to appear in the ATIC/PPB-BETS data around 700 GeV. If upcoming data from ATIC-4 and GLAST confirm this feature, this would point to a O(1) TeV DM annihilating only into leptons. Otherwise the solution (i) would be favored. We comment on the implications of these results for DM models, direct DM detection and colliders as well as on the possibility of an astrophysical origin of the excess.
Links : https://arxiv.org/abs/0809.2409
Dark Matter interpretation of low energy IceCube MESE excess
M. Chianese, G. Miele, S. Morisi
The 2-years MESE IceCube events show a slightly excess in the energy range 10-100 TeV with a maximum local statistical significance of 2.3σ, once a hard astrophysical power-law is assumed. A spectral index smaller than 2.2 is indeed suggested by multi-messenger studies related to p-p sources and by the recent IceCube analysis regarding 6-years up-going muon neutrinos. In the present paper, we propose a two-components scenario where the extraterrestrial neutrinos are explained in terms of an astrophysical power-law and a Dark Matter signal. We consider both decaying and annihilating Dark Matter candidates with different final states (quarks and leptons) and different halo density profiles. We perform a likelihood-ratio analysis that provides a statistical significance up to 3.9σ for a Dark Matter interpretation of the IceCube low energy excess
Links : https://arxiv.org/abs/1610.04612
Novel Spectral Features in MeV Gamma Rays from Dark Matter
Torsten Bringmann, Ahmad Galea, Andrzej Hryczuk, Christoph Weniger
Astrophysical searches for gamma rays are one of the main strategies to probe the annihilation or decay of dark matter particles. We present a new class of distinct sub-GeV spectral features that generically appear in kinematical situations where the available center-of-mass energy in such processes is just above threshold to produce excited meson states. Using a Fisher forecast with realistic astrophysical backgrounds, we demonstrate that for upcoming experiments like e-ASTROGAM and ComPair these signals can turn out to be the smoking gun in the search for particle dark matter.
Links : https://arxiv.org/abs/1610.04613
Impact of Mass Generation for Simplified Dark Matter Models
Nicole F. Bell, Yi Cai, Rebecca K. Leane
In the simplified dark matter models commonly studied, the mass generation mechanism for the dark fields is not typically specified. We demonstrate that the dark matter interaction types, and hence the annihilation processes relevant for relic density and indirect detection, are strongly dictated by the mass generation mechanism chosen for the dark sector particles, and the requirement of gauge invariance. We focus on the class of models in which fermionic dark matter couples to a spin-1 vector or axial-vector mediator. However, in order to generate dark sector mass terms, it is necessary in most cases to introduce a dark Higgs field and thus a spin-0 scalar mediator will also be present. In the case that all the dark sector fields gain masses via coupling to a single dark sector Higgs field, it is mandatory that the axial-vector coupling of the spin-1 mediator to the dark matter is non-zero; the vector coupling may also be present depending on the charge assignments. For all other mass generation options, only pure vector couplings between the spin-1 mediator and the dark matter are allowed. If these coupling restrictions are not obeyed, unphysical results may be obtained such as a violation of unitarity at high energies. These two-mediator scenarios lead to important phenomenology that does not arise in single mediator models. We survey two-mediator dark matter models which contain both vector and scalar mediators, and explore their relic density and indirect detection phenomenology.
Links : https://arxiv.org/abs/1610.03063
Novel dark matter constraints from antiprotons in the light of AMS-02
Alessandro Cuoco, Michael Krämer, Michael Korsmeier
We evaluate dark matter (DM) limits from cosmic-ray antiproton observations using the recent precise AMS-02 measurements. We properly take into account cosmic-ray propagation uncertainties fitting at the same time DM and propagation parameters, and marginalizing over the latter. We find a significant (~4.5 sigma) indication of a DM signal for DM masses near 80 GeV, with a hadronic annihilation cross-section close to the thermal value, sigma v ~3e-26 cm3s-1. Intriguingly, this signal is compatible with the DM interpretation of the Galactic center gamma-ray excess. Confirmation of the signal will require a more accurate study of the systematic uncertainties, i.e., the antiproton production cross-section, and modelling of the solar modulation effect. Interpreting the AMS-02 data in terms of upper limits on hadronic DM annihilation, we obtain strong constraints excluding a thermal annihilation cross-section for DM masses below about 50 GeV and in the range between approximately 150 and 500 GeV, even for conservative propagation scenarios. Except for the range around 80 GeV, our limits are a factor 4 stronger than the limits from gamma-ray observations of dwarf galaxies.
Links : https://arxiv.org/abs/1610.03071