Possible implications of asymmetric fermionic dark matter for neutron stars

Abstract

We consider the implications of fermionic asymmetric dark matter (ADM) for a “mixed neutron star” composed of ordinary baryons and dark fermions. We find examples, where for a certain range of dark fermion mass – when it is less than that of ordinary baryons – such systems can reach higher masses than the maximal values allowed for ordinary (“pure”) neutron stars. This is shown both within a simplified, heuristic Newtonian analytic framework with non-interacting particles and via a general relativistic numerical calculation, under certain assumptions for the dark matter equation of state. Our work applies to various dark fermion models such as mirror matter models and to other models where the dark fermions have self-interactions.