GW170817 constraints on the properties of a neutron star in the presence of WIMP dark matter

Abstract

The properties of a neutron star are studied in the presence of dark matter. We have considered a relatively light weakly interacting massive particle (WIMP) as a dark matter candidate with properties suggested by the results of the DAMA/LIBRA collaboration, realized for instance within the framework of the Next-to-Minimal Supersymmetric Standard Model. The dark matter particle interacts with the baryonic matter of a neutron star through Higgs bosons. The dark matter variables are essentially fixed using the results of the DAMA/LIBRA experiment, which are then used to build the Lagrangian density for the WIMP–nucleon interaction inside a neutron star. We have used the effective field theory motivated relativistic mean field model to study the equations-of-state in the presence of dark matter. The predicted equations-of-state are used in the Tolman–Oppenheimer–Volkoff equations to obtain the mass–radius relations, the moment of inertia, and effects of the tidal field on a neutron star. The calculated properties are compared with the corresponding data of the GW170817 event.