If the symmetry breaking responsible for axion dark matter production occurs during the radiation-dominated epoch in the early Universe, then this produces large amplitude perturbations that collapse into dense objects known as axion miniclusters. The characteristic minicluster mass, $M_0$, is set by the mass inside the horizon when axion oscillations begin. For the QCD axion $M_0\sim 10^{-10}M_\odot$, however for an axion-like particle $M_0$ can approach $M_\odot$ or higher. Using the Press-Schechter formalism we compute the mass function of halos formed by hierarchical structure formation from these seeds. We compute the concentrations and collapse times of these halos and show that they can grow to be as massive as $10^6M_0$. Within the halos, miniclusters likely remain tightly bound, and we compute their gravitational microlensing signal taking the fraction of axion dark matter collapsed into miniclusters, $f_{\rm MC}$, as a free parameter. A large value of $f_{\rm MC}$ severely weakens constraints on axion scenarios from direct detection experiments. We take into account the non-Gaussian distribution of sizes of miniclusters and determine how this effects the number of microlensing events. We develop the tools to consider microlensing by an extended mass function of non-point-like objects, and use microlensing data to place the first observational constraints on $f_{\rm MC}$. This opens a new window for the potential discovery of the axion.
In some axion dark matter models a dominant fraction of axions resides in dense small-scale substructures, axion miniclusters. A fraction of these substructures is disrupted and forms tidal streams where the axion density may still be an order of magnitude larger than the average. We discuss implications of these streams for the direct axion searches. We estimate the fraction of disrupted miniclusters and the parameters of the resulting streams, and find that stream-crossing events would occur at a rate of about $1/(20 {\rm yr})$ for 2-3 days, during which the signal in axion detectors would b…
The QCD axion is expected to form dense structures known as axion miniclusters if the Peccei-Quinn symmetry is broken after inflation. Miniclusters that have survived until today will interact with neutron stars (NSs) in the Milky Way to produce transient radio signals from axion-photon conversion in the NS magnetosphere. We quantify the properties of these encounters and find that they occur frequently ($\mathcal{O}(1-100)\,\mathrm{day}^{-1}$); last between a day and a few months; are spatially clustered towards the Galactic center; and can reach observable fluxes. These radio transients are …
The phase transition responsible for axion dark matter production can create large amplitude isocurvature perturbations which collapse into dense objects known as axion miniclusters. We use microlensing data from the EROS survey, and from recent observations with the Subaru Hyper Suprime Cam to place constraints on the minicluster scenario. We compute the microlensing event rate for miniclusters treating them as spatially extended objects with an extended mass function. Using the published bounds on the number of microlensing events we bound the fraction of DM collapsed into miniclusters, $f_{…
Axion miniclusters are dense bound structures of dark matter axions that are predicted to form in the post-inflationary Peccei-Quinn symmetry breaking scenario. Although dense, miniclusters can easily be perturbed or even become unbound by interactions with baryonic objects such as stars. Here, we characterize the spatial distribution and properties of miniclusters in the Milky Way (MW) today after undergoing these stellar interactions throughout their lifetime. We do this by performing a suite of Monte Carlo simulations which track the miniclusters' structure and, in particular, accounts for …
The Peak-Patch algorithm is used to identify the densest minicluster seeds in the initial axion density field simulated from string decay. The fate of these dense seeds is found by tracking the subsequent gravitational collapse in cosmological $N$-body simulations. We find that miniclusters at late times are well described by NFW profiles, although for around 80\% of simulated miniclusters a single power-law density profile of $r^{-2.9}$ is an equally good fit due to the unresolved scale radius. Under the assumption that all miniclusters with an unresolved scale radius are described by a power…
Gravitationally bound clumps of dark matter axions in the form of 'miniclusters' or even denser 'axion stars' can generate strong radio signals through axion-photon conversion when encountering highly magnetised neutron star magnetospheres. We systematically study encounters of axion clumps with neutron stars and characterise the axion infall, conversion and the subsequent propagation of the photons. We show that the high density and low escape velocity of the axion clumps lead to strong, narrow, and temporally characteristic transient radio lines with an expected duration varying from seconds…
When Peccei-Quinn (PQ) symmetry breaking happens after inflation, the axion field takes random values in causally disconnected regions. This leads to fluctuations of order one in the axion energy density around the QCD epoch. These over-densities eventually decouple from the Hubble expansion and form so-called miniclusters. We present a semi-analytical method to calculate the average axion energy density, as well as the power spectrum, from the re-alignment mechanism in this scenario. Furthermore, we develop a modified Press & Schechter approach, suitable to describe the collapse of non-linear…
From Rags to Jeans: Axion Miniclusters from Early matter domination
Universidad de Santiago de Chile（圣地亚哥智利大学）；Universidad Técnica Federico Santa María（费德里科·圣玛丽亚理工大学）；New York University Abu Dhabi（纽约大学阿布扎比分校）；Universidad de Zaragoza（萨拉戈萨大学）
We present a solution of the Schrödinger-Poisson system based on the WKB ansatz for the wave function. In this way we obtain a description of a gravitationally bound clump of axion dark matter by a superposition of energy eigenstates with random phases. It can be applied to any self-consistent pair of radial density distribution and phase space density $f(E)$ related by Eddington's formula. We adopt this as a model for axion miniclusters in our galaxy and use it to study the mass loss due to a star encounter by using standard perturbation theory methods known from quantum mechanics. Finally, w…
We study the gravitational collapse of axion dark matter fluctuations in the post-inflationary scenario, so-called axion miniclusters, with N-body simulations. Largely confirming theoretical expectations, overdensities begin to collapse in the radiation-dominated epoch and form an early distribution of miniclusters with masses up to $10^{-12}\,M_\odot$. After matter-radiation equality, ongoing mergers give rise to a steep power-law distribution of minicluster halo masses. The density profiles of well-resolved halos are NFW-like to good approximation. The fraction of axion dark matter in these …
If the symmetry breaking leading to the origin of the axion dark matter field occurs after the end of inflation and is never restored, then overdensities in the axion field collapse to form dense objects known in the literature as axion miniclusters. The estimates of the typical minicluster mass and radius strongly depend on the details of the cosmology at which the onset of axion oscillations begin. In this work we study the properties and phenomenology of miniclusters in alternative cosmological histories and find that they can change by many orders of magnitude. Our findings have direct imp…
We study the Bose condensation of scalar dark matter in the presence of both gravitational and self-interactions. Axions and other scalar dark matter in gravitationally bound miniclusters or dark matter halos are expected to condense into Bose-Einstein condensates called Bose stars. This process has been shown to occur through attractive self-interactions of the axion-like particles or through the field's self gravitation. We show that in the high-occupancy regime of scalar dark matter, the Boltzmann collision integral does not describe either gravitaitonal or self-interactions, and derive kin…
We study the small scale structure of axion dark matter in the post-inflationary scenario, which predicts the formation of low-mass, high-density clumps of gravitationally bound axions called axion miniclusters. To this end, we follow numerically the cosmological evolution of the axion field and the network of strings and domain walls until the density contrast is frozen. Our simulations, comprising up to $8192^3$ points, are the largest studies of the axion field evolution in the non-linear regime presented so far. Axitons, pseudo-breathers of the Klein-Gordon equation, are observed to form i…
We study the formation and the subsequent mass growth of axion stars inside axion miniclusters. Numerically solving the Schrödinger-Poisson equations with realistic initial conditions we find that the axion stars exhibit similar properties to solitonic cores in ultralight bosonic dark matter halos in terms of their radial density profiles and large-amplitude oscillations. A merger of two axion stars confirms a previously found empirical law for the mass of the merged axion star. Monitoring the axion star masses over time, we observe a mass growth consistent with the mass increase of Bose stars…
We use a modified version of the Peak Patch excursion set formalism to compute the mass and size distribution of QCD axion miniclusters from a fully non-Gaussian initial density field obtained from numerical simulations of axion string decay. We find strong agreement with N-Body simulations at a significantly lower computational cost. We employ a spherical collapse model and provide fitting functions for the modified barrier in the radiation era. The halo mass function at $z=629$ has a power-law distribution $M^{-0.6}$ for masses within the range $10^{-15}\lesssim M\lesssim 10^{-10}M_{\odot}$,…
The default assumption of early universe cosmology is that the postinflationary universe was radiation dominated until it was about 47000 years old. Direct evidence for the radiation dominated epoch extends back until nucleosynthesis, which began during the first second. However there are theoretical reasons to prefer a period of earlier matter domination, prior to nucleosynthesis, e.g. due to late decaying massive particles needed to explain baryogenesis. Axion cosmology is quantitatively affected by an early period of matter domination, with a different axion mass range preferred and greater…
Transient axion streams from disrupted miniclusters
Università degli Studi di Salerno（萨莱诺大学）；Sofia University（索非亚大学）；Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare, Laboratori Nazionali di Frascati（意大利国家核物理研究所，弗拉斯卡蒂国家实验室）
Axion-like particle (ALP) dark matter shows distinctive behavior on scales where wavelike effects dominate over self-gravity. Ultralight axions are candidates for fuzzy dark matter (FDM) whose de Broglie wavelength in virialized halos reaches scales of kiloparsecs. Important features of FDM scenarios are the formation of solitonic halo cores, suppressed small-scale perturbations, and enhanced gravitational relaxation. More massive ALPs, including the QCD axion, behave like CDM on galactic scales but may be clumped into axion miniclusters if they were produced after inflation. Just as FDM halos…
Despite considerable experimental progress large parts of the axion-like particle (ALP) parameter space remain difficult to probe in terrestrial experiments. In some cases, however, small-scale structure of the ALP dark matter (DM) distribution is strongly enhanced, offering opportunities for astrophysical tests. Such an enhancement can be produced by a period of pre-nucleosynthesis early matter domination (EMD). This cosmology arises in many ultraviolet completions and generates the correct relic abundance for weak coupling $f_a\sim 10^{16}$ GeV, ALP masses in the range $10^{-13}$ eV $<m_a < …
A non-negligible fraction of the QCD axion dark matter may form gravitationally bound Bose Einstein condensates, which are commonly known as axion stars or axion clumps. Such astrophysical objects have been recently proposed as the cause for the single candidate event reported by Subaru Hyper Suprime-Cam (HSC) microlensing search in the Andromeda galaxy. Depending on the breaking scale of the Peccei-Quinn symmetry and the details of the dark matter scenario, QCD axion clumps may form via gravitational condensation during radiation domination, in the dense core of axion miniclusters, or within …
A fraction of light scalar dark matter, especially axions, may organize into Bose-Einstein condensates, gravitationally bound clumps, "boson stars", and be present in large number in galactic halos today. We compute the expected number of gravitational microlensing events of clumps composed of the ordinary QCD axion and axion-like-particles and derive microlensing constraints from the EROS-2 survey and the Subaru Hyper Suprime-Cam observation. We perform a detailed lensing calculation, including the finite lens and source size effects in our analysis. We constrain the axion mass in terms of th…
Terrestrial searches for the conversion of dark matter axions or axion-like particles into photons inside magnetic fields are sensitive to the phase space structure of the local Milky Way halo. We simulate signals in a hypothetical future experiment based on the Axion Dark Matter eXperiment (ADMX) that could be performed once the axion has been detected and a frequency range containing the axion mass has been identified. We develop a statistical analysis to extract astrophysical parameters, such as the halo velocity dispersion and laboratory velocity, from such data and find that with only a f…
In a recent paper we have shown that a minimally coupled, self-interacting scalar field of mass $m$ can form black holes of mass $M=\sqrt{3}/(4m)$ (in Planck units). If dark matter is composed by axions, they can form miniclusters that for QCD axions have masses below this value. In this work it is shown that for a scenario in which the axion mass depends on the temperature as $m \propto T^{-6}$, minicluster masses above $0.32\,M_\odot$, corresponding to an axion mass of $3\times 10^{-10}$ eV, exceed $M$ and can collapse into black holes. If a fraction of these black holes is in binary systems…
Models of Dark Matter (DM) can leave unique imprints on the Universe's small scale structure by boosting density perturbations on small scales. We study the capability of Pulsar Timing Arrays to search for, and constrain, subhalos from such models. The models of DM we consider are ordinary adiabatic perturbations in $Λ$CDM, QCD axion miniclusters, models with early matter domination, and vector DM produced during inflation. We show that $Λ$CDM, largely due to tidal stripping effects in the Milky Way, is out of reach for PTAs (as well as every other probe proposed to detect DM small scale struc…
We consider how QCD axions produced by the misalignment mechanism could form galactic dark matter halos. We recall that stationary, gravitationally stable axion field configurations have the size of an asteroid with masses of order $10^{-13} $ solar masses (because gradient pressure is insufficient to support a larger object). We call such field configurations "drops". We explore whether rotating drops could be larger, and find that their mass could increase by a factor ~ 10. Remarkably this mass is comparable to the mass of miniclusters generated from misalignment axions in the scenario where…
The QCD axion acquires the potential through the non-perturbative effect of the QCD matters around the QCD phase transition. During this period, the direct interaction between the axion and the QCD matters sets in. Focusing on the impact of this direct interaction, we propose two scenarios where the fluctuation of the axion can rapidly grow, potentially leading to the formation of axion miniclusters even if the Peccei-Quinn (PQ) symmetry was already broken during inflation. The first scenario assumes that the primordial curvature perturbation at the horizon scale during the QCD epoch was signi…
We develop a formalism to describe extensions of existing axion haloscope designs to those that possess directional sensitivity to incoming dark matter axion velocities. The effects are measurable if experiments are designed to have dimensions that approach the typical coherence length for the local axion field. With directional sensitivity, axion detection experiments would have a greatly enhanced potential to probe the local dark matter velocity distribution. We develop our formalism generally, but apply it to specific experimental designs, namely resonant cavities and dielectric disk halosc…
Cosmological evolution of axion field in the early universe might be significantly affected by a thermal friction induced by the axion coupling to thermalized hidden sector. We examine the effects of such a thermal friction on axion dark matter density and its perturbation when the thermal friction dominates over the Hubble friction until when the axion field begins to oscillate around the potential minimum. We show that in the presence of sizable thermal friction there can be an exponential decay phase of the axion field before the oscillation phase, during which the axion energy density is e…
Axions and axion-like particles (ALPs) are some of the most popular candidates for dark matter, with several viable production scenarios that make different predictions. In the scenario in which the axion is born after inflation, its field develops significant inhomogeneity and evolves in a highly nonlinear fashion. Understanding the eventual abundance and distribution of axionic dark matter in this scenario therefore requires dedicated numerical simulations. So far the community has focused its efforts on simulations of the QCD axion, a model that predicts a specific temperature dependence fo…
We study Bose-Einstein condensation and formation of Bose stars in the virialized dark matter halos/miniclusters by universal gravitational interactions. We prove that this phenomenon does occur and it is described by kinetic equation. We give expression for the condensation time. Our results suggest that Bose stars may form kinetically in the mainstream dark matter models such as invisible QCD axions and Fuzzy Dark Matter.
The axion, motivated as a solution to the strong CP problem, is also a viable dark matter candidate. We use N-body simulations to study the formation of substructures from white-noise density fluctuations. The density profiles of our relaxed axion minihalos can be described by the Navarro-Frenk-White profile, and the minihalos' concentration number agrees well with a simple, physically-motivated model. We develop a semi-analytic formula to fit the mass function from our simulation, which agrees broadly at different redshifts and only differs at factor of two level from classic halo mass functi…
Axions are a viable candidate for Cold Dark Matter (CDM) which should generically form minihalos of sub-planetary masses from white-noise isocurvature density fluctuations if the Peccei-Quinn phase transition occurs after inflation. Despite being denser than the larger halos formed out of adiabatic fluctuations from inflation, axion minihalos have surface densities much smaller than the critical value required for gravitational lensing to produce multiple images or high magnification, and hence are practically undetectable as lenses in isolation. However, their lensing effect can be enhanced w…
Unified Gas Heating Constraints on Extended Dark Matter Compact Objects
Korea Institute for Advanced Study（韩国高等科学研究院）；High Energy Accelerator Research Organization (KEK)（高能加速器研究机构）；The University of Tokyo Institutes for Advanced Study, The University of Tokyo（东京大学前沿研究教育院）；Graduate University for Advanced Studies (SOKENDAI)（日本高级研究院）
Starting from the evidence that dark matter indeed exists and permeates the entire cosmos, various bounds on its properties can be estimated. Beginning with the cosmic microwave background and large scale structure, we summarize bounds on the ultralight bosonic dark matter (UBDM) mass and cosmic density. These bounds are extended to larger masses by considering galaxy formation and evolution, and the phenomenon of black hole superradiance. We then discuss the formation of different classes of UBDM compact objects including solitons/axion stars and miniclusters. Next, we consider astrophysical …
We investigate the phenomenological consequences of axion-like particle (ALP) dark matter with an early matter domination triggered by primordial black holes (PBHs). We focus on light BHs with masses smaller than $\sim 10^9~$g which fully evaporate before Big Bang nucleosynthesis. We numerically solve the coupled Boltzmann equations, carefully taking the greybody factors and BH angular momentum into account. We find that the entropy injection from PBH evaporation dilutes the ALP relic abundance originally produced via the vacuum misalignment mechanism, opening the parameter space with larger s…
Early vs late string networks from a minimal QCD Axion
Deutsches Elektronen-Synchrotron DESY（德国电子同步辐射中心）；Weizmann Institute of Science（魏茨曼科学研究所）；University of Oxford（牛津大学）；University of Liverpool（利物浦大学）；Universitat de Barcelona（巴塞罗那大学）；Galileo Galilei Institute for theoretical physics, Centro Nazionale INFN di Studi Avanzati（伽利略·伽利莱理论物理研究所，意大利国家高级INFN中心）；INFN Sezione di Firenze（意大利国家核物理研究院佛罗伦萨分部）；University of Florence（佛罗伦萨大学）
