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Motivated by the gamma-ray excess observed from the region surrounding the Galactic Center, we explore particle dark matter models that could potentially account for the spectrum and normalization of this signal. Taking a model-independent approach, we consider an exhaustive list of tree-level diagrams for dark matter annihilation, and determine which could account for the observed gamma-ray emission while simultaneously predicting a thermal relic abundance equal to the measured cosmological dark matter density. We identify a wide variety of models that can meet these criteria without conflicting with existing constraints from direct detection experiments or the Large Hadron Collider (LHC). The prospects for detection in near future dark matter experiments and/or the upcoming 14 TeV LHC appear quite promising.
Searching for Dark Matter with Cosmic Gamma Rays summarizes the evidence for dark matter and what we can learn about its particle nature using cosmic gamma rays. It has almost been 100 years since Fritz Zwicky first detected hints that most of the matter in the Universe that doesn't directly emit or reflect light. Since then, the observational evidence for dark matter has continued to grow. Dark matter may be a new kind of particle that is governed by physics beyond our Standard Model of particle physics. In many models, dark matter annihilation or decay produces gamma rays. There are a variety of instruments observing the gamma-ray sky from tens of MeV to hundreds of TeV. Some make deep, focused observations of small regions, while others provide coverage of the entire sky. Each experiment offers complementary sensitivity to dark matter searches in a variety of target sizes, locations, and dark matter mass scales. We review results from recent gamma-ray experiments including anomalies some have attributed to dark matter. We also discuss how our gamma-ray observations complement other dark matter searches and the prospects for future experiments.
The gamma-ray excess observed from the Galactic Center can be interpreted as dark matter particles annihilating into Standard Model fermions with a cross section near that expected for a thermal relic. Although many particle physics models have been shown to be able to account for this signal, the fact that this particle has not yet been observed in direct detection experiments somewhat restricts the nature of its interactions. One way to suppress the dark matter's elastic scattering cross section with nuclei is to consider models in which the dark matter is part of a hidden sector. In such models, the dark matter can annihilate into other hidden sector particles, which then decay into Standard Model fermions through a small degree of mixing with the photon, Z, or Higgs bosons. After discussing the gamma-ray signal from hidden sector dark matter in general terms, we consider two concrete realizations: a hidden photon model in which the dark matter annihilates into a pair of vector gauge bosons that decay through kinetic mixing with the photon, and a scenario within the generalized NMSSM in which the dark matter is a singlino-like neutralino that annihilates into a pair of singlet Higgs bosons, which decay through their mixing with the Higgs bosons of the MSSM.
Thermal relic dark matter particles with a mass of 31-40 GeV and that dominantly annihilate to bottom quarks have been shown to provide an excellent description of the excess gamma rays observed from the center of the Milky Way. Flavored dark matter provides a well-motivated framework in which the dark matter can dominantly couple to bottom quarks in a flavor-safe manner. We propose a phenomenologically viable model of bottom flavored dark matter that can account for the spectral shape and normalization of the gamma-ray excess while naturally suppressing the elastic scattering cross sections probed by direct detection experiments. This model will be definitively tested with increased exposure at LUX and with data from the upcoming high-energy run of the Large Hadron Collider (LHC).
Past studies have identified a spatially extended excess of ~1-3 GeV gamma rays from the region surrounding the Galactic Center, consistent with the emission expected from annihilating dark matter. We revisit and scrutinize this signal with the intention of further constraining its characteristics and origin. By applying cuts to the Fermi event parameter CTBCORE, we suppress the tails of the point spread function and generate high resolution gamma-ray maps, enabling us to more easily separate the various gamma-ray components. Within these maps, we find the GeV excess to be robust and highly statistically significant, with a spectrum, angular distribution, and overall normalization that is in good agreement with that predicted by simple annihilating dark matter models. For example, the signal is very well fit by a 31-40 GeV dark matter particle annihilating to b quarks with an annihilation cross section of sigma v = (1.4-2.0) x 10^-26 cm^3/s (normalized to a local dark matter density of 0.3 GeV/cm^3). Furthermore, we confirm that the angular distribution of the excess is approximately spherically symmetric and centered around the dynamical center of the Milky Way (within ~0.05 degrees of Sgr A*), showing no sign of elongation along or perpendicular to the Galactic Plane. The signal is observed to extend to at least 10 degrees from the Galactic Center, disfavoring the possibility that this emission originates from millisecond pulsars.
This book offers construction of a renormalizable effective theory of electroweak-interacting spin-1 dark matter (DM). The effective theory realizes minimal but essential features of DM predicted in extra-dimension models, and enables to systematically treat non-perturbative corrections such as the Sommerfeld effects. Deriving an annihilation cross section including the Sommerfeld effects based on the effective theory, the author discusses the future sensitivity of observations to gamma-ray from the Galactic Center. As a result, the author explains the monochromatic gamma-ray signatures originate from two photons (γγ) or photon and Z boson (γZ) produced in the process of DM annihilations, and concludes a possible scenario that unstable neutral spin-1 particles (Z’) appear and results in a spectral peak in addition to the one caused by γγ and γZ channels in gamma-ray observations. If those two spectral peaks are observed, the masses of spin-1 DM and Z’ would be reconstructed.
Particle dark matter: the name of the game -- The thermal relic paradigm: zeroth-order lessons from cosmology -- The thermal relic paradigm: a closer look -- The art of WIMP direct detection -- Indirect dark matter searches -- Searching for dark matter with particle colliders -- Axions and axion-like particles as dark matter -- Sterile neutrinos as dark matter particles -- Bestiarium: a short, biased compendium of notable dark matter particle candidates and models
"Astrophysical observations are central to the quest for new physics including the search for dark matter. The search is based on identifying potential deviations from the Standard Model in the cosmic-ray and the electromagnetic spectrum of astrophysical sources. The deviations could either be signatures of dark matter or have consequences for our understanding of known sources. The last decade of precision measurements from detectors in space, such as the Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope, and the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer for detecting cosmic rays aboard the International Space Station, have identified certain "anomalies" or unexpected spectral features, that challenge the standard models of how cosmic rays are produced and propagate through the Galaxy. Examples include an unexpectedly hard spectrum of cosmic-ray antiprotons at energies above a few hundred GeV, and an unexplained excess of very-high-energy gamma rays from the Sun. An excess of cosmic-ray antiprotons and a hard spectrum of gamma rays from the Sun also feature in the predictions of various models of dark matter annihilation. However, without a complete understanding of the antiproton spectrum, and the production mechanisms of solar gamma rays, it is impossible to differentiate new physics from the standard astrophysical foreground flux of these particles. Measuring these fluxes at energies that extend into the TeV range is an observational challenge that we explore in this thesis. The High AltitudeWater Cherenkov (HAWC) Observatory is a wide field-of-view array that is currently the only detector capable of making high-statistics measurements of cosmic rays and gamma rays at multi-TeV energies. This work uses data from HAWC collected between 2014-2017 to constrain two unique fluxes at the TeV scale: antiprotons in Galactic cosmic rays, and gamma rays from the quiescent Sun - both relevant foregrounds for astrophysical searches for physics beyond the Standard Model. Cosmic rays in the inner solar system are subject to deflection by the magnetic fields of the Earth and the Sun, affecting the observed deficit or "shadow" of the Moon/Sun. Cosmic rays also interact with the Sun's atmosphere to produce a steady emission of gamma rays up to at least 200 GeV, though the exact underlying mechanism remains a puzzle. We present the strongest upper limits on the antiproton to proton ratio in TeV cosmic rays at ~1% using the Moon shadow as a momentum/ charge discriminant. We also discuss our search for excess gamma rays from the Sun above 1 TeV, and present the resulting implications for models of dark matter capture and annihilation in the Sun. Our results constrain the steady gamma-ray emission from the Sun up to a few times 10−12 TeV cm−2 s−1 at 1 TeV. For dark matter annihilation with long-lived mediators in the Sun, we present the strongest upper limits on dark matter-proton scattering cross section up to ~10−45 cm2, which is a potential improvement of four orders of magnitude compared to direct-detection experiments for dark matter mass of 1 TeV."--Pages xi-xii.
This thesis covers several theoretical aspects of WIMP (weakly interacting massive particles) dark matter searches, with a particular emphasis on colliders. It mainly focuses on the use of effective field theories as a tool for Large Hadron Collider (LHC) searches, discussing in detail the issue of their validity, and on simplified dark matter models, which are receiving a growing attention from the physics community. It highlights the theoretical consistency of simplified models, which is essential in order to correctly exploit their potential and for them to be a common reference when comparing results from different experiments. This thesis is of interest to researchers (both theorists and experimentalists) in the field of dark matter searches, and offers a comprehensive introduction to dark matter and to WIMP searches for students and non-experts.