Neutrino Portal Research Articles

Scrutinizing right-handed neutrino portal dark matter with Yukawa effect

Analyzing the neutrino Yukawa effect in the freeze-out process of a generic dark matter candidate with right-handed neutrino portal, we identify the parameter regions satisfying the observed dark matter relic density as well as the current Fermi-LAT and H.E.S.S. limits and the future CTA reach on gamma-ray signals. In this scenario the dark matter couples to the Higgs boson at one-loop level and thus could be detected by spin-independent nucleonic scattering for a reasonable range of the relevant parameters.

Probing the sterile neutrino portal to Dark Matter with γ rays

Sterile neutrinos could provide a link between the Standard Model particles and a dark sector, besides generating active neutrino masses via the seesaw mechanism type I. We show that, if dark matter annihilation into sterile neutrinos determines its observed relic abundance, it is possible to explain the Galactic Center γ-ray excess reported by the Fermi-LAT Collaboration as due to an astrophysical component plus dark matter annihilations. We observe that sterile neutrino portal to dark matter provides an impressively good fit, with a p-value of 0.78 in the best fit point, to the Galactic Center γ-ray flux, for DM masses in the range (40-80) GeV and sterile neutrino masses 20 GeV ≲ MN < MDM. Such values are compatible with the limits from Fermi-LAT observations of the dwarfs spheroidal galaxies in the Milky Way halo, which rule out dark matter masses below ∼ 50 GeV (90 GeV), for sterile neutrino masses MN ≲ MDM (MN ≪ MDM). We also estimate the impact of AMS-02 anti-proton data on this scenario.

Indirect detection of neutrino portal dark matter

We investigate the feasibility of the indirect detection of dark matter in a simple model using the neutrino portal. The model is very economical, with right-handed neutrinos generating neutrino masses through the Type-I seesaw mechanism and simultaneously mediating interactions with dark matter. Given the small neutrino Yukawa couplings expected in a Type-I seesaw, direct detection and accelerator probes of dark matter in this scenario are challenging. However, dark matter can efficiently annihilate to right-handed neutrinos, which then decay via active-sterile mixing through the weak interactions, leading to a variety of indirect astronomical signatures. We derive the existing constraints on this scenario from Planck cosmic microwave background measurements, Fermi dwarf spheroidal galaxies and Galactic Center gamma-rays observations, and Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer - 02 antiprotons observations, and also discuss the future prospects of Fermi and the Cherenkov Telescope Array. Thermal annihilation rates are already being probed for dark matter lighter than about 50 GeV, and this can be extended to dark matter masses of 100 GeV and beyond in the future. This scenario can also provide a dark matter interpretation of the Fermi Galactic Center gamma ray excess, and we confront this interpretation with other indirect constraints. Finally we discuss some of the exciting implications of extensions of the minimal model with large neutrino Yukawa couplings and Higgs portal couplings.

Thermal dark matter through the Dirac neutrino portal

We study a simple model of thermal dark matter annihilating to standard model neutrinos via the neutrino portal. A (pseudo-)Dirac sterile neutrino serves as a mediator between the visible and the dark sectors, while an approximate lepton number symmetry allows for a large neutrino Yukawa coupling and, in turn, efficient dark matter annihilation. The dark sector consists of two particles, a Dirac fermion and complex scalar, charged under a symmetry that ensures the stability of the dark matter. A generic prediction of the model is a sterile neutrino with a large active-sterile mixing angle that decays primarily invisibly. We derive existing constraints and future projections from direct detection experiments, colliders, rare meson and tau decays, electroweak precision tests, and small scale structure observations. Along with these phenomenological tests, we investigate the consequences of perturbativity and scalar mass fine tuning on the model parameter space. A simple, conservative scheme to confront the various tests with the thermal relic target is outlined, and we demonstrate that much of the cosmologically-motivated parameter space is already constrained. We also identify new probes of this scenario such as multi-body kaon decays and Drell-Yan production of $W$ bosons at the LHC.

Very heavy dark Skyrmions

A dark sector with a solitonic component provides a means to circumvent the problem of generically low annihilation cross sections of very heavy dark matter particles. At the same time, enhanced annihilation cross sections are necessary for indirect detection of very heavy dark matter components beyond 100 TeV. Non-thermally produced dark matter in this mass range could therefore contribute to the cosmic gamma -ray and neutrino flux above 100 TeV, and massive Skyrmions provide an interesting framework for the discussion of these scenarios. Therefore a Higgs portal and a neutrino portal for very heavy Skyrmion dark matter are discussed. The Higgs portal model demonstrates a dark mediator bottleneck, where limitations on particle annihilation cross sections will prevent a signal from the potentially large soliton annihilation cross sections. This problem can be avoided in models where the dark mediator decays. This is illustrated by the neutrino portal for Skyrmion dark matter.

Higgs boson decays to dark photons through the vectorized lepton portal

Vector-like fermions charged under both the Standard Model and a new dark gauge group arise in many theories of new physics. If these fermions include an electroweak doublet and singlet with equal dark charges, they can potentially connect to the Higgs field through a Yukawa coupling in analogy to the standard neutrino portal. With such a coupling, fermion loops generate exotic decays of the Higgs boson to one or more dark vector bosons. In this work we study a minimal realization of this scenario with an Abelian dark group. We investigate the potential new Higgs decays modes, we compute their rates, and we study the prospects for observing them at the Large Hadron Collider and beyond given the other experimental constraints on the theory. We also discuss extensions of the theory to non-Abelian dark groups.

Light sterile neutrinos from a late phase transition

Light sterile neutrinos represent a well-motivated extension of the 3-neutrino paradigm. However, the impressive agreement between standard cosmology and data casts doubts on their existence. Here we present a class of scenarios that robustly avoids this tension. In these models the sterile neutrinos are light, chiral states of a new sector interacting with the Standard Model via the right-handed neutrino portal and, crucially, active-sterile neutrino oscillations require a phase transition in the hidden sector. We explore the hidden-couplings/critical-temperature plane and identify regions where several sterile neutrinos can be accommodated. A late phase transition is usually preferred and may also ward off a potential threat posed by the formation of topologically stable defects.

Heavy neutrino impact on the triple Higgs coupling

We present the first calculation of the one-loop corrections to the triple Higgs coupling in the framework of a simplified 3+1 Dirac neutrino model, that is three light neutrinos plus one heavy neutrino embedded in the Standard Model (SM). The triple Higgs coupling is a key parameter of the scalar potential triggering the electroweak symmetry-breaking mechanism in the SM. The impact of the heavy neutrino can be as large as $+20\%$ to $+30\%$ for parameter points allowed by the current experimental constraints depending on the tightness of the perturbative bound. This can be probed at the high-luminosity LHC, at future electron-positron colliders and at the Future Circular Collider in hadron-hadron mode, an envisioned 100 TeV $pp$ machine. Our calculation, being done in the mass basis, can be extended to any model using the neutrino portal. In addition, the effects that we have calculated are expected to be enhanced if additional heavy fermions with large Yukawa couplings are included, as in low-scale seesaw mechanisms.

IceCube Events from Decaying Dark Matter with Neutrino Portal

IceCube has observed several PeV neutrino events whose astrophysical origin has not been identified. In this proceeding, we discuss heavy decaying dark matter may be responsible for these neutrinos. Dark matter [Formula: see text] is constructed to communicate with standard model particles through the neutrino-portal interaction. We calculate both total and differential decay width for the dominant three-body decay of dark matter and show that to fit the data, the required mass is around [Formula: see text](10 PeV) and lifetime is about [Formula: see text]s.

IceCube events from heavy DM decays through the right-handed neutrino portal

The recently observed IceCube PeV events could be due to heavy dark matter (DM) decay. In this paper, we propose a simple DM model with extra U(1)X gauge symmetry and bridge it with standard model particles through heavy right-handed neutrino. The Dirac fermion DM χ with mass ∼5 PeV can dominantly decay into a dark Higgs (ϕ), the SM Higgs (h) and a neutrino (ν). If the lifetime of χ is ∼O(1028) s, the resulting neutrino flux can fit data consistently. The neutrino flux from χ→ϕhν in our model is softer than the one predicted from χ→νh, for example. We also discuss a possible mechanism to produce DM with the right relic abundance.

Asymmetric dark matter and CP violating scatterings in a UV complete model

We explore possible asymmetric dark matter models using CP violating scatterings to generate an asymmetry. In particular, we introduce a new model, based on DM fields coupling to the SM Higgs and lepton doublets, a neutrino portal, and explore its UV completions. We study the CP violation and asymmetry formation of this model, to demonstrate that it is capable of producing the correct abundance of dark matter and the observed matter-antimatter asymmetry. Crucial to achieving this is the introduction of interactions which violate CP with a T2 dependence.

Effective theories for Dark Matter interactions and the neutrino portal paradigm

Abstract In this article we discuss a general effective-theory description of a multicomponent dark sector with an unspecified non-trivial symmetry and its interactions with the Standard Model generated by the exchange of heavy mediators. We then categorize the relevant effective operators given the current experimental sensistivity where the underlying theory is weakly coupled and renormalizable, with neutral mediators: either scalars or fermions. An interesting scenario resulting from this categorization is the neutrino portal, where only fermion mediators are present, and where the dark sector consists of fermions and scalars such that the lightest dark particle is a fermion, this scenario is characterized by having naturally suppressed couplings of the DM to all SM particles except the neutrinos and has received little attention in the literature. We find that there is a wide region in parameter space allowed by the current experimental constraints (relic abundance, direct and indirect detection limits); the cleanest signature of this paradigm is the presence of monochromatic neutrino lines with energy equal to that of the DM mass, but experimental sensitivity would have to be improved significantly before this can be probed.

A naturally light sterile neutrino in an asymmetric dark matter model

A recently proposed asymmetric mirror dark matter model where the mirror sector is connected with the visible one by a right-handed neutrino portal, is shown to lead naturally to a 3+1 active-sterile neutrino spectrum, if the portal consists only of two right-handed neutrinos. At tree level the model has four massless neutrino states, three (predominately) active and one sterile. The active neutrinos pick up tiny masses via the minimal radiative inverse seesaw mechanism at one-loop level. The loop effects also generate the large solar and atmospheric mixings, as well as the observed reactor mixing for certain ranges of parameters of the model. The dominant contribution to the sterile neutrino mass (~eV) arises from the gravitationally induced dimension-5 operators. Generating active-sterile mixing requires a two Higgs doublet extension of the standard model and a small mixing between the ordinary and mirror Higgs fields, which occurs naturally in mirror models.

Discovering asymmetric dark matter with anti-neutrinos

We discuss possible signatures of Asymmetric Dark Matter (ADM)through dark matter decays to neutrinos.We specifically focus on scenarios in whichthe Standard Model (SM) baryon asymmetry is transferred to the dark sector(DS) through higher dimensional operators in chemical equilibrium.In such cases, the dark matter (DM) carries lepton and/or baryon number, andwe point out that for a wide range of quantum number assignments,by far the strongest constraints on dark matter decays come fromdecays to neutrinos through the ``neutrino portal'' operatorHL. Together with the facts that ADM favorslighter DM masses ∼ a few GeV and that the decays would lead only toanti-neutrinos and no neutrinos (or vice versa), the detectionof such decays at neutrino telescopes would provide compellingevidence for ADM. We discuss current and future bounds onmodels where the DM decays to neutrinos through operatorsof dimension ⩽ 6. For dimension 6 operators, the scale suppressingthe decay is bounded to be ≳1012–1013 GeV.