Extragalactic Dark Matter Research Articles

A Model of Modified Newtonian Gravity Alternative to MOND, Consistent with the Properties of Spiral Galaxies and Compatible with Extragalactic Dark Matter

A new model of the modified Newtonian gravity called Compacted & Collapsing Gravity (CCG) is proposed. Similar to the Milgrom’s MOND, it allows explaining the flattening of rotation curve in spiral galaxies, thus eliminates the need for dark matter at this level. However, in contrast to MOND, it puts a distinct limit on effective gravity; thereby constraints the sizes of single galaxies in connection to their masses, which complies with observations. In the bigger than single galaxies structures such as galaxy clusters, CCG rather complements than replaces interpretations of the observational data based on dark matter. Besides, the new model provides a plausible explanation to the hierarchical structure of the universe.

Robust limits from upcoming neutrino telescopes and implications on minimal dark matter models

Experimental developments in neutrino telescopes are drastically improving their ability to constrain the annihilation cross-section of dark matter. In this paper, we employ an angular power spectrum analysis method to probe the galactic and extra-galactic dark matter signals. First we derive projections for a next generation of neutrino telescope that is inspired by KM3NeT. We emphasise that such analysis is much less sensitive to the choice of dark matter density profile. Remarkably, the projected sensitivity is improved by more than an order of magnitude with respect to the existing limits obtained by assuming the Burkert dark matter density profile describing the galactic halo.Second, we analyse minimal extensions to the Standard Model that will be maximally probed by the next generation of neutrino telescopes. As benchmark scenarios, we consider Dirac dark matter in s- and t-channel models with vector and scalar mediators. We follow a global approach by examining all relevant complementary experimental constraints.We find that neutrino telescopes will be able to competitively probe significant portions of parameter space. Interestingly, the anomaly-free L_μ-L_τ model can potentially be explored in regions where the relic abundance is achieved through freeze-out mechanism.

Searching for dark matter annihilation from individual halos: uncertainties, scatter and signal-to-noise ratios

Individual extragalactic dark matter halos, such as those associated with nearby galaxies and galaxy clusters, are promising targets for searches for gamma rays from dark matter annihilation. We review the predictions for the annihilation flux from individual halos, focusing on the effect of current uncertainties in the concentration-mass relation and the contribution from halo substructure, and also estimating the intrinsic halo-to-halo scatter expected. After careful consideration of recent simulation results, we conclude that the concentrations of the smallest halos, while well-determined at high redshift, are still uncertain by a factor of 4–6 when extrapolated to low redshift. This in turn produces up to two orders of magnitude uncertainty in the predicted annihilation flux for any halo mass above this scale. Substructure evolution, the small-scale cutoff to the power spectrum, cosmology, and baryonic effects all introduce smaller, though cumulative, uncertainties. We then consider intrinsic variations from halo to halo. These arise from variations in concentration and substructure, leading to a scatter of ∼2.5 in the predicted annihilation luminosity. Finally, we consider the problem of detecting gamma rays from annihilation, given the expected contributions from other sources. We estimate the signal-to-noise ratio for gamma-ray detection as a function of halo mass, assuming that the isotropic gamma-ray background and cosmic rays from star formation are the main noise sources in the detection. This calculation suggests that group-scale halos, individually or in stacks, may be a particularly interesting target for the next generation of annihilation searches.

Mapping extragalactic dark matter annihilation with galaxy surveys: A systematic study of stacked group searches

Dark matter in the halos surrounding galaxy groups and clusters can annihilate to high-energy photons. Recent advancements in the construction of galaxy group catalogs provide many thousands of potential extragalactic targets for dark matter. In this paper, we outline a procedure to infer the dark matter signal associated with a given galaxy group. Applying this procedure to a catalog of sources, one can create a full-sky map of the brightest extragalactic dark matter targets in the nearby Universe ($z\lesssim 0.03$), supplementing sources of dark matter annihilation from within the Local Group. As with searches for dark matter in dwarf galaxies, these extragalactic targets can be stacked together to enhance the signals associated with dark matter. We validate this procedure on mock $\textit{Fermi}$ gamma-ray data sets using a galaxy catalog constructed from the $\texttt{DarkSky}$ $N$-body cosmological simulation and demonstrate that the limits are robust, at $\mathcal{O}(1)$ levels, to systematic uncertainties on halo mass and concentration. We also quantify other sources of systematic uncertainty arising from the analysis and modeling assumptions. Our results suggest that a stacking analysis using galaxy group catalogs provides a powerful opportunity to discover extragalactic dark matter and complements existing studies of Milky Way dwarf galaxies.

Search for Dark Matter Annihilation in Galaxy Groups.

We use 413 weeks of publicly available Fermi Pass 8 gamma-ray data combined with recently developed galaxy group catalogs to search for evidence of dark matter annihilation in extragalactic halos. In our study, we use luminosity-based mass estimates and mass-to-concentration relations to infer the J factors and associated uncertainties for hundreds of galaxy groups within a redshift range z≲0.03. We employ a conservative substructure boost factor model, which only enhances the sensitivity by an O(1) factor. No significant evidence for dark matter annihilation is found, and we exclude thermal relic cross sections for dark matter masses below ∼30 GeV to 95% confidence in the bb[over ¯] annihilation channel. These bounds are comparable to those from MilkyWay dwarf spheroidal satellite galaxies. The results of our analysis increase the tension but do not rule out the dark matter interpretation of the Galactic Center excess. We provide a catalog of the galaxy groups used in this study and their inferred properties, which can be broadly applied to searches for extragalactic dark matter.

Extragalactic diffuse γ-rays from dark matter annihilation: revised prediction and full modelling uncertainties

Recent high-energy data from Fermi-LAT on the diffuse γ-ray background have been used to set among the best constraints on annihilating TeV cold dark matter candidates. In order to assess the robustness of these limits, we revisit and update the calculation of the isotropic extragalactic γ-ray intensity from dark matter annihilation. The emission from halos with masses ⩾ 1010 M⊙ provides a robust lower bound on the predicted intensity. The intensity including smaller halos whose properties are extrapolated from their higher mass counterparts is typically 5 times higher, and boost from subhalos yields an additional factor ∼ 1.5. We also rank the uncertainties from all ingredients and provide a detailed error budget for them. Overall, our fiducial intensity is a factor 5 lower than the one derived by the Fermi-LAT collaboration in their latest analysis. This indicates that the limits set on extragalactic dark matter annihilations could be relaxed by the same factor. We also calculate the expected intensity for self-interacting dark matter in massive halos and find the emission reduced by a factor 3 compared to the collisionless counterpart. The next release of the CLUMPY code will provide all the tools necessary to reproduce and ease future improvements of this prediction.

Constraints on small-scale primordial power by annihilation signals from extragalactic dark matter minihalos

We revisit constraints on small-scale primordial power from annihilation signals from dark matter minihalos. Using gamma rays and neutrinos from extragalactic minihalos and assuming the delta-function primordial spectrum, we show the dependence of the constraints on annihilation modes, the mass of dark matter, and the annihilation cross section. We report both conservative constraints by assuming minihalos are fully destructed when becoming part of halos originating from the standard almost-scale invariant primordial spectrum, and optimistic constraints by neglecting destruction.

γ-ray Constraints on Decaying Dark Matter and Implications for IceCube.

Utilizing the Fermi measurement of the γ-ray spectrum toward the Inner Galaxy, we derive some of the strongest constraints to date on the dark matter (DM) lifetime in the mass range from hundreds of MeV to above an EeV. Our profile-likelihood-based analysis relies on 413weeks of Fermi Pass 8 data from 200MeV to 2TeV, along with up-to-date models for diffuse γ-ray emission within the MilkyWay. We model Galactic and extragalactic DM decay and include contributions to the DM-induced γ-ray flux resulting from both primary emission and inverse-Compton scattering of primary electrons and positrons. For the extragalactic flux, we also calculate the spectrum associated with cascades of high-energy γ rays scattering off of the cosmic background radiation. We argue that a decaying DM interpretation for the 10TeV-1PeV neutrino flux observed by IceCube is disfavored by our constraints. Our results also challenge a decaying DM explanation of the AMS-02 positron flux. We interpret the results in terms of individual final states and in the context of simplified scenarios such as a hidden-sector glueball model.

Constraints on dark matter annihilation and decay from the isotropic gamma-ray background**Supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China (11475189, 11475191, 11135009), 973 Program of China (2013CB837000), Strategic Priority Research Program “The Emergence of Cosmological Structures” of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (XDB09000000)

We study the constraints on dark matter (DM) annihilation/decay from the Fermi-LAT Isotropic Gamma-Ray Background (IGRB) observation. We consider the contributions from both extragalactic and galactic DM components. For DM annihilation, the evolution of extragalactic DM halos is taken into account. We find that the IGRB annihilation constraints under some DM subhalo models can be comparable to those derived from the observations of dwarf spheroidal galaxies and CMB. We also use the IGRB results to constrain the parameter regions accounting for the latest AMS-02 electron-positron anomaly. We find that the majority of DM annihilation/decay channels are strongly disfavored by the latest Fermi-LAT IGRB observation; only DM decays to μ+μ− and 4μ channels may be valid.

Isotropic extragalactic flux from dark matter annihilations: lessons from interacting dark matter scenarios

The extragalactic γ-ray and neutrino emission may have a contribution from dark matter (DM) annihilations. In the case of discrepancies between observations and standard predictions, one could infer the DM pair annihilation cross section into cosmic rays by studying the shape of the energy spectrum. So far all analyses of the extragalactic DM signal have assumed the standard cosmological model (ΛCDM) as the underlying theory. However, there are alternative DM scenarios where the number of low-mass objects is significantly suppressed. Therefore the characteristics of the γ-ray and neutrino emission in these models may differ from ΛCDM as a result. Here we show that the extragalactic isotropic signal in these alternative models has a similar energy dependence to that in ΛCDM, but the overall normalisation is reduced. The similarities between the energy spectra combined with the flux suppression could lead one to misinterpret possible evidence for models beyond ΛCDM as being due to CDM particles annihilating with a much weaker cross section than expected.

CLUMPY: Jeans analysis, [formula omitted]-ray and [formula omitted] fluxes from dark matter (sub-)structures

We present an update of the CLUMPY code for the calculation of the astrophysical J-factors (from dark matter annihilation/decay) for any Galactic or extragalactic dark matter halo including substructures: halo-to-halo concentration scatter may now be enabled, boost factors can include several levels of substructures, and triaxiality is a new option for dark matter haloes. This new version takes advantage of the cfitsio and HEALPix libraries to propose fits output maps using the HEALPix pixelisation scheme. Skymaps for γ-ray and ν signals from generic annihilation/decay spectra are now direct outputs of CLUMPY. Making use of HEALPix routines, smoothing by a user-defined instrumental Gaussian beam and computing the angular power spectrum of the maps are now possible. In addition to these improvements, the main novelty is the implementation of a Jeans analysis module, to obtain dark matter density profiles from kinematic data in relaxed spherical systems (e.g., dwarf spheroidal galaxies). The code is also interfaced with the GreAT toolkit designed for Markov Chain Monte Carlo analyses, from which probability density functions and credible intervals can be obtained for velocity dispersions, dark matter profiles, and J-factors. Program summaryProgram title:CLUMPYCatalogue identifier: AEKS_v2_0Program summary URL:http://cpc.cs.qub.ac.uk/summaries/AEKS_v2_0.htmlProgram obtainable from: CPC Program Library, Queen’s University, Belfast, N. IrelandLicensing provisions: Standard CPC licence, http://cpc.cs.qub.ac.uk/licence/licence.htmlNo. of lines in distributed program, including test data, etc.: 494335No. of bytes in distributed program, including test data, etc.: 24425968Distribution format: tar.gzProgramming language: C/C++.Computer: PC and Mac.Operating system: UNIX(Linux), MacOS X.RAM: Between 500MB and 1GB depending on the size of the requested skymapCatalogue identifier of previous version: AEKS_v1_0Journal reference of previous version: Comput. Phys. Comm. 183(2012)656Classification: 1.1, 1.7, 1.9.External routines: CERN ROOT (http://root.cern.ch), GSL (http://www.gnu.org/software/gsl), cfitsio (http://heasarc.gsfc.nasa.gov/fitsio/fitsio.html), HEALPix C++ and F90 (http://healpix.sourceforge.net/index.php), GreAT (http://lpsc.in2p3.fr/great) (for MCMC analyses only), and Doxygen (http://www.doxygen.org) (optional)Does the new version supersede the previous version?: YesNature of problem: Calculation of dark matter profile from kinematic data, γ-ray and ν signals from dark matter annihilation/decay.Solution method: Solve the integro-differential Jeans equation (optimised for speed) for several generic distributions (dark matter profile, light profile, velocity anisotropy). Integration of the DM density (squared) along a line-of-sight for generic dark matter haloes with substructures (spatial, mass, concentration distributions). Draw full skymaps of γ-ray and ν emission from dark matter structures, smoothed by an instrument PSF using HEALPix tools.Reasons for new version: Many more functionalities and options have been added to the code.Summary of revisions: Inclusion of the PPPC4DMID spectra for gamma-ray and neutrino fluxes; HEALPix pixelisation for skymaps and angular power spectrum; DM profile triaxiality enabled; More mass–concentration options; Multi-level substructure boost; Jeans analysis module to compute dark matter profiles for stellar kinematic data; Improved ROOT and FITS output.Restrictions: The diffuse extragalactic contribution to the signal (and γ-ray attenuation) as well as secondary radiation from dark matter remains to be included in order to provide a comprehensive description of the expected signal.Running time: This is highly dependent of the user-defined choices of DM profiles, precision ε and integration angle αint: •∼1 hour for a full skymap (including substructures) with αint=0.1° and ε=0.01;•∼=1 mn for a 5°×5° skymap (including substructures) with αint=0.1° and ε=0.01;•∼5 mn for a typical Jeans/MCMC analysis (on a ‘ultrafaint’-like dwarf spheroidal galaxy) using a constant anisotropy profile.

Modelling the flux distribution function of the extragalactic gamma-ray background from dark matter annihilation

The one-point function (i.e., the isotropic flux distribution) is a complementary method to (anisotropic) two-point correlations in searches for a gamma-ray dark matter annihilation signature. Using analytical models of structure formation and dark matter halo properties, we compute the gamma-ray flux distribution due to annihilations in extragalactic dark matter halos, as it would be observed by the Fermi Large Area Telescope. Combining the central limit theorem and Monte Carlo sampling, we show that the flux distribution takes the form of a narrow Gaussian of `diffuse' light, with an `unresolved point source' power-law tail as a result of bright halos. We argue that this background due to dark matter constitutes an irreducible and significant background component for point-source annihilation searches with galaxy clusters and dwarf spheroidal galaxies, modifying the predicted signal-to-noise ratio. A study of astrophysical backgrounds to this signal reveals that the shape of the total gamma-ray flux distribution is very sensitive to the contribution of a dark matter component, allowing us to forecast promising one-point upper limits on the annihilation cross-section. We show that by using the flux distribution at only one energy bin, one can probe the canonical cross-section required for explaining the relic density, for dark matter of masses around tens of GeV.

Modelling the flux distribution function of the extragalactic gamma-ray background from dark matter annihilation

The one-point function (i.e., the isotropic flux distribution) is a complementary method to (anisotropic) two-point correlations in searches for a gamma-ray dark matter annihilation signature. Using analytical models of structure formation and dark matter halo properties, we compute the gamma-ray flux distribution due to annihilations in extragalactic dark matter halos, as it would be observed by the Fermi Large Area Telescope. Combining the central limit theorem and Monte Carlo sampling, we show that the flux distribution takes the form of a narrow Gaussian of `diffuse' light, with an `unresolved point source' power-law tail as a result of bright halos. We argue that this background due to dark matter constitutes an irreducible and significant background component for point-source annihilation searches with galaxy clusters and dwarf spheroidal galaxies, modifying the predicted signal-to-noise ratio. A study of astrophysical backgrounds to this signal reveals that the shape of the total gamma-ray flux distribution is very sensitive to the contribution of a dark matter component, allowing us to forecast promising one-point upper limits on the annihilation cross-section. We show that by using the flux distribution at only one energy bin, one can probe the canonical cross-section required for explaining the relic density, for dark matter of masses around tens of GeV.

Resolving small-scale dark matter structures using multisource indirect detection

The extragalactic dark matter (DM) annihilation signal depends on the product of the clumping factor, <\delta^2>, and the velocity-weighted annihilation cross section, \sigma v. This "clumping factor-\sigma v" degeneracy can be broken by comparing DM annihilation signals from multiple sources. In particular, one can constrain the minimum DM halo mass, M_min, which depends on the mass of the DM particles and the kinetic decoupling temperature, by comparing observations of individual DM sources to the diffuse DM annihilation signal. We demonstrate this with careful semi-analytic treatments of the DM contribution to the diffuse Isotropic Gamma-Ray Background (IGRB), and compare it with two recent hints of DM from the Galactic Center, namely, ~130 GeV DM annihilating dominantly in the \chi\chi\ to \gamma\gamma\ channel, and (10-30) GeV DM annihilating in the \chi\chi\ to b\bar{b} or \chi\chi\ to \tau^{+}\tau^{-} channels. We show that, even in the most conservative analysis, the Fermi IGRB measurement already provides interesting sensitivity. A more detailed analysis of the IGRB, with new Fermi IGRB measurements and modeling of astrophysical backgrounds, may be able to probe values of M_min up to 1 M_sun for the 130 GeV candidate and 10^{-6} M_sun for the light DM candidates. Increasing the substructure content of halos by a reasonable amount would further improve these constraints.

EXTRAGALACTIC DARK MATTER AND DIRECT DETECTION EXPERIMENTS

Recent astronomical data strongly suggest that a significant part of the dark matter, composing the Local Group and Virgo Supercluster, is not incorporated into the galaxy haloes and forms diffuse components of these galaxy clusters. Apparently, a portion of the particles from these components may penetrate into the Milky Way and make an extragalactic contribution to the total dark matter containment of our Galaxy. We find that the particles of the diffuse component of the Local Group are apt to contribute $\sim 12%$ to the total dark matter density near the Earth. The particles of the extragalactic dark matter stand out because of their high speed ($\sim 600$ {km/s}), i.e. they are much faster than the galactic dark matter. In addition, their speed distribution is very narrow ($\sim 20$ {km/s}). The particles have isotropic velocity distribution (perhaps, in contrast to the galactic dark matter). The extragalactic dark matter should give a significant contribution to the direct detection signal. If the detector is sensitive only to the fast particles ($v<450$ {km/s}), the signal may even dominate. The density of other possible types of the extragalactic dark matter (for instance, of the diffuse component of the Virgo Supercluster) should be relatively small and comparable with the average dark matter density of the Universe. However, these particles can generate anomaly high energy collisions in direct dark matter detectors.

γ -rays from annihilating dark matter in galaxy clusters: stacking versus single source analysis

Clusters of galaxies are potentially important targets for indirect searches for dark matter annihilation. Here we reassess the detection prospects for annihilation in massive halos, based on a statistical investigation of 1743 clusters in the new Meta-Catalog of X-ray Clusters. We derive a new limit for the extra-galactic dark matter annihilation background of at least 20% of that originating from the Galaxy for an integration angle of 0.1 deg. The number of clusters scales as a power law with their brightness, suggesting that stacking may provide a significant improvement over a single target analysis. The mean angle containing 80% of the dark-matter signal for the sample is ~0.15 deg, indicating that instruments with this angular resolution or better would be optimal for a cluster annihilation search based on stacking. A detailed study based on the Fermi-LAT performance and position-dependent background, suggests that stacking may result in a factor ~2 improvement in sensitivity, depending on the source selection criteria. Based on the expected performance of CTA, we find no improvement with stacking, due to the requirement for pointed observations. We note that several potentially important targets: Opiuchius, A2199, A3627 (Norma) and CIZAJ1324.7-5736 may be disfavoured due to a poor contrast with respect to the Galactic dark-matter signal. The use of the homogenised MCXC meta-catalogue provides a robust ranking of the targets, although the absolute value of their signal depends on the exact dark matter substructure content. For conservative assumptions, we find that galaxy clusters (with or without stacking) can probe <sigma v> down to 1e-25-1e-24 cm3/s for dark matter masses in the range 10 GeV-100 GeV. For more favourable substructure configurations, <sigma v>~1e-26 cm3/s may be reached.

Dark matter: Theory

The particle physics interpretation of the dark matter problem, which is intimately of cosmological and astrophysical nature, is going to be posed under deep scrutiny in the next years. From the particle physics side, accelerators like the LHC will deeply test theoretical ideas of new physics beyond the Standard Model, where particle candidates of dark matter are predicted to exist. From the astrophysical side, many probes are already providing a great deal of independent information on the foreseen signals which can be produced by the galactic or extra-galactic dark matter. In all this, cosmology plays a central role in determining the relevance and the basic properties of the particle dark matter candidate. The ultimate hope is the emergence of dark matter signals and the rise of a coherent picture of new physics from and at the crossing of particle physics, astrophysics and cosmology. A very ambitious and farreaching project, which will bring to a deeper level our understanding of the fundamental laws which rule the Universe.

Particles in astrophysics and cosmology: a dark connection

The particle physics interpretation of the missing-mass, or dark-matter, problem of cosmological and astrophysical nature is going to be posed under deep scrutiny in the next years. From the particle physics side, accelerators will deeply test theoretical ideas of new physics beyond the Standard Model, where particle candidates of dark matter are predicted. From the astrophysical side, many probes are already providing a great deal of independent information on the foreseen signals which can be produced by the galactic or extra-galactic dark matter. The ultimate hope is in fact the emergence of dark matter signals from the various sources of backgrounds and the rise of a coherent picture of new physics from the accelerator physics, astrophysics and cosmology sides. A very ambitious and far-reaching project, which will bring to a deeper level our understanding of the fundamental laws which rule the Universe.

Conservative constraints on dark matter from the Fermi-LAT isotropic diffuse gamma-ray background spectrum

We examine the constraints on final state radiation from Weakly Interacting Massive Particle (WIMP) dark matter candidates annihilating into various standard model final states, as imposed by the measurement of the isotropic diffuse gamma-ray background by the Large Area Telescope aboard the Fermi Gamma-Ray Space Telescope. The expected isotropic diffuse signal from dark matter annihilation has contributions from the local Milky Way (MW) as well as from extragalactic dark matter. The signal from the MW is very insensitive to the adopted dark matter profile of the halos, and dominates the signal from extragalactic halos, which is sensitive to the low mass cut-off of the halo mass function. We adopt a conservative model for both the low halo mass survival cut-off and the substructure boost factor of the Galactic and extragalactic components, and only consider the primary final state radiation. This provides robust constraints which reach the thermal production cross-section for low mass WIMPs annihilating into hadronic modes. We also reanalyze limits from HESS observations of the Galactic Ridge region using a conservative model for the dark matter halo profile. When combined with the HESS constraint, the isotropic diffuse spectrum rules out all interpretations of the PAMELA positron excess based on dark matter annihilation into two lepton final states. Annihilation into four leptons through new intermediate states, although constrained by the data, is not excluded.

WIMP dark matter and supersymmetry searches with neutrino telescopes

The particle physics interpretation of the missing-mass, or dark-matter, a problem of cosmological and astrophysical nature, is going to be placed under strong scrutiny in the next years. From the particle physics side, accelerator physics will deeply test theoretical ideas about new physics beyond the Standard Model, where a particle physics candidate to dark matter is often naturally obtained. From the astrophysical side, many probes are already providing a great deal of independent information on signals which can be produced by the galactic or extra-galactic dark matter. The current and new-generation experimental efforts are therefore going to place under deep scrutiny the theoretical explanations of the relevant signals. The ultimate hope is in fact to be able to disentangle a dark matter signal from the various sources of backgrounds. Neutrino telescopes are one of the prominent tools for looking at dark matter and search for a signal, the neutrino flux from Earth and Sun. In this neutrino dark matter searches share properties with both direct dark matter searches and cosmic-ray indirect dark matter searches, and therefore complement these different detection techniques.