Search For Antideuterons Research Articles

Antideuterons in cosmic rays: sources and discovery potential

Antibaryons are produced in our Galaxy in collisions of high energy cosmic rays with the interstellar medium and in old supernova remnants, and possibly, in exotic sources such as primordial black hole evaporation or dark matter annihilations and decays. The search for signals from exotic sources in antiproton data is hampered by large backgrounds from spallation which, within theoretical errors, can solely account for the current data. Due to the higher energy threshold for antideuteron production, which translates into a suppression of the low energy flux from spallations, antideuteron searches have been proposed as a probe for exotic sources. We perform in this paper a comprehensive analysis of the antideuteron fluxes at the Earth expected from known and hypothetical sources in our Galaxy, and we calculate their maximal values consistent with current antiproton data from AMS-02. We find that supernova remnants generate a negligible flux, whereas primordial black hole evaporation and dark matter annihilations or decays may dominate the total flux at low energies. On the other hand, we find that the {detection of cosmic antideuterons} would require, for the scenarios studied in this paper and assuming optimistic values of the coalescence momentum and solar modulation, an increase of the experimental sensitivity compared to ongoing and planned instruments by at least a factor of 2. Finally, we briefly comment on the prospects for antihelium-3 detection.

Indirect detection analysis: wino dark matter case study

We perform a multichannel analysis of the indirect signals for the Wino Dark Matter, including one-loop electroweak and Sommerfeld enhancement corrections. We derive limits from cosmic ray antiprotons and positrons, from continuum galactic and extragalactic diffuse γ-ray spectra, from the absence of γ-ray line features at the galactic center above 500 GeV in energy, from γ-rays toward nearby dwarf spheroidal galaxies and galaxy clusters, and from CMB power-spectra. Additionally, we show the future prospects for neutrino observations toward the inner Galaxy and from antideuteron searches. For each of these indirect detection probes we include and discuss the relevance of the most important astrophysical uncertainties that can impact the strength of the derived limits. We find that the Wino as a dark matter candidate is excluded in the mass range bellow ≃ 800 GeV from antiprotons and between 1.8 and 3.5 TeV from the absence of a γ-ray line feature toward the galactic center. Limits from other indirect detection probes confirm the main bulk of the excluded mass ranges.

Dark matter searches with cosmic antideuterons: status and perspectives

The search for antideuterons in cosmic rays has been proposed as a promising channel for dark matter indirect detection, especially for dark matter particles with a low or intermediate mass. With the current operational phase of the AMS-02 experiment and the ongoing development of a future dedicated experiment, the General Antiparticle Spectrometer (GAPS), there are exciting prospects for a dark matter detection in the near future. In this paper we develop a detailed and complete re-analysis of the cosmic-ray antideuteron signal, by discussing the main relevant issues related to antideuteron production and propagation through the interstellar medium and the heliosphere. In particular, we first critically revisit the coalescence mechanism for antideuteron production in dark matter annihilation processes. Then, since antideuteron searches have their best prospects of detection at low kinetic energies where the effect of the solar wind and magnetic field are most relevant, we address the impact of solar modulation modeling on the antideuteron flux at the Earth by developing a full numerical 4D solution of cosmic rays transport in the heliosphere. We finally use these improved predictions to provide updated estimates of the reaching capabilities for AMS-02 and GAPS, compatible with the current constraints imposed by the antiprotons measurements of PAMELA. After the antiproton bound is applied, prospects of detection of up to about 15 events in GAPS LDB+ and AMS-02 missions are found, depending on the dark matter mass, annihilation rate and production channel from one side, and on the coalescence process, galactic and solar transport parameters on the other.

An indirect search for dark matter using antideuterons: the GAPS experiment

The general antiparticle spectrometer (GAPS) experiment is an indirect dark matter search. GAPS detects the antideuterons produced in WIMP–WIMP annihilation, a generic feature in many theories beyond the Standard Model. Antideuterons are a nearly background free signature of exotic physics. GAPS has substantial discovery potential for dark matter within the minimal supersymmetric model and its extensions, and models with universal extra dimensions. GAPS complements underground experiments, reaching parts of supersymmetric parameter space unavailable to them, and working to better constrain the properties of dark matter where they overlap in parameter space. GAPS is designed to be launched from a balloon. GAPS is funded for a prototype flight in 2011, to be followed by a long duration balloon flight to execute its science program. We discuss recent theoretical investigations on antideuteron searches, and their implications for experiment design. We describe the GAPS experiment placing particular emphasis on recent investigations that represent technical or conceptual extensions of the original GAPS concept.

Indirect detection of light neutralino dark matter in the next-to-minimal supersymmetric standard model

We explore the prospects for indirect detection of neutralino dark matter in supersymmetric models with an extended Higgs sector (next-to-minimal supersymmetric standard model, or NMSSM). We compute, for the first time, one-loop amplitudes for NMSSM neutralino pair annihilation into two photons and two gluons, and point out that extra diagrams (with respect to the minimal supersymmetric standard model, or MSSM), featuring a potentially light $CP$-odd Higgs boson exchange, can strongly enhance these radiative modes. Expected signals in neutrino telescopes due to the annihilation of relic neutralinos in the Sun and in the Earth are evaluated, as well as the prospects of detection of a neutralino annihilation signal in space-based gamma-ray, antiproton and positron search experiments, and at low-energy antideuteron searches. We find that in the low mass regime the signals from capture in the Earth are enhanced compared to the MSSM, and that NMSSM neutralinos have a remote possibility of affecting solar dynamics. Also, antimatter experiments are an excellent probe of galactic NMSSM dark matter. We also find enhanced two-photon decay modes that make the possibility of the detection of a monochromatic gamma-ray line within the NMSSM more promising than in the MSSM, although likely below the sensitivity of next generation gamma-ray telescopes.

Model independent approach to focus point supersymmetry: from dark matter to collider searches

The focus point region of supersymmetric models is compelling in that it simultaneously features low fine-tuning, provides a decoupling solution to the SUSY flavor and CP problems, suppresses proton decay rates and can accommodate the WMAP measured cold dark matter (DM) relic density through a mixed bino-higgsino dark matter particle. We present the focus point region in terms of a weak scale parameterization, which allows for a relatively model independent compilation of phenomenological constraints and prospects. We present direct and indirect neutralino dark matter detection rates for two different halo density profiles, and show that prospects for direct DM detection and indirect detection via neutrino telescopes such as IceCube and anti-deuteron searches by GAPS are especially promising. We also present LHC reach prospects via gluino and squark cascade decay searches, and also via clean trilepton signatures arising from chargino-neutralino production. Both methods provide a reach out to m ∼ 1.7 TeV. At a TeV-scale linear e+e− collider (LC), the maximal reach is attained in the 12 or 13 channels. In the DM allowed region of parameter space, a (s)1/2 = 0.5 TeV LC has a reach which is comparable to that of the LHC. However, the reach of a 1 TeV LC extends out to m ∼ 3.5 TeV.

Antideuteron yield and coalescence implications at the AGS

We present the preliminary results of Experiment 864's search for antideuterons in 11.5 GeV/c per nucleon Au + Pt collisions at the AGS. The data represents 14 billion 10% central interactions selectively triggered for events with high mass candidates. Antideuteron invariant yields are found to be 3.5 ± 1.5( stat.) +0.9 −0.5( sys.) × 10 −8 GeV −2 c 2 in the rapidity range between y = 1.8 and 2.2 ( y cm = 1.6) for 〈 p t 〉= 0.35 GeV/c and 3.7±2.7( stat.) +1.4 −1.5( sys.) × 10 −8 GeV −2 c 2 between rapidities y = 1.4 and 1.8 at 〈 p t 〉= 0.26 GeV/c. These yields, along with E864 antiproton measurements, lead to a most probable value for the coalescence factor B 2 of 4.1 ± 2.9( stat.) +2.3 −2.4( sys.) × 10 −3 GeV −2 c 3 after correcting antiproton yields for antihyperon feeddown contributions. Implications for the coalescence model and antimatter annihilation from an antideuteron measurement are also discussed.