We study the interaction of an electrically charged component of the dark matter with a magnetized galactic interstellar medium (ISM) of (rotating) spiral galaxies. For the observed ordered component of the field, $B\sim μ$G, we find that the accumulated Lorentz interactions between the charged particles and the ISM will extract an order unity fraction of the disk angular momentum over the few Gyr Galactic lifetime unless $q/e \lesssim 10^{-13\pm 1}\,m\,c^2/$ GeV if all the dark matter is charged. The bound is weakened by factor $f_{\rm qdm}^{-1/2}$ if only a mass fraction $f_{\rm qdm}\gtrsim0.13$ of the dark matter is charged. Here $q$ and $m$ are the dark matter particle mass and charge. If $f_{\rm qdm}\approx1$ this bound excludes charged dark matter produced via the freeze-in mechanism for $m \lesssim$ TeV/$c^2$. This bound on $q/m$, obtained from Milky Way parameters, is rough and not based on any precise empirical test. However this bound is extremely strong and should motivate further work to better model the interaction of charged dark matter with ordered and disordered magnetic fields in galaxies and clusters of galaxies; to develop precise tests for the presence of charged dark matter based on better estimates of angular momentum exchange; and also to better understand how charged dark matter might modify the growth of magnetic fields, and the formation and interaction histories of galaxies, galaxy groups, and clusters.
Following up on our earlier work predicting fractionally charged supermassive gravitinos, we explain their potential relevance as novel candidates for Dark Matter and discuss possible signatures and ways to detect them.
Direct searches for dark matter lead to serious problems for simple models with stable neutral Weakly Interacting Massive Particles (WIMPs) as candidates for dark matter. A possibility is discussed that new stable quarks and charged leptons exist and are hidden from detection, being bound in neutral dark atoms of composite dark matter. Stable -2 charged particles $O^{--}$ are bound with primordial helium in O-helium (OHe) atoms, being specific nuclear interacting form of composite dark matter. The positive results of DAMA experiments can be explained as annual modulation of radiative capture o…
We revisit constraints on dark matter that is charged under a $U(1)$ gauge group in the dark sector, decoupled from Standard Model forces. We find that the strongest constraints in the literature are subject to a number of mitigating factors. For instance, the naive dark matter thermalization timescale in halos is corrected by saturation effects that slow down isotropization for modest ellipticities. The weakened bounds uncover interesting parameter space, making models with weak-scale charged dark matter viable, even with electromagnetic strength interaction. This also leads to the intriguing…
While the behavior of the dominant component of the dark matter is reasonably well established by cosmological observables, its particle nature and interactions with the rest of the matter are not known. We consider three dark matter models that admit electromagnetic interaction between baryons and dark matter: (a) milli-charged particle (CCDM) of charge $q_{\rm ccdm}$ and mass $m_{\rm ccdm}$, (b) a neutral atom of two charged particles of mass $m_{\rm dd}$ (DD), and (c) a neutral atom of doubly charged particle and helium nucleus (HeD). We derive and discuss in detail the formation, stability…
We present a scenario of vector dark matter production during inflation containing a complex inflaton field which is charged under a dark gauge field and which has a symmetry breaking potential. As the inflaton field rolls towards the global minimum of the potential the dark photons become massive with a mass which can be larger than the Hubble scale during inflation. The accumulated energy of the quantum fluctuations of the produced dark photons gives the observed relic density of the dark matter for a wide range of parameters. Depending on the parameters, either the transverse modes or the l…
We construct a model of hidden massive vector boson dark matter as a homogeneous coherent oscillation in the entire universe without any dangerous instability. We make use of a particular form of the vector boson coupling to a scalar field through the gauge kinetic function. This scenario may be distinguished from other dark matter models through the observation of statistical anisotropy in the dark matter isocurvature perturbation.
We provide a simple UV theory for a Dirac dark matter with a massless Abelian gauge boson. We introduce a single fermion transforming as the $\bf{16}$ representation in the SO(10)$'$ gauge group, which is assumed to be spontaneously broken to SU(5)$'\times$U(1)$'$. The SU(5)$'$ gauge interaction becomes strong at an intermediate scale and then we obtain a light composite Dirac fermion with U(1)$'$ gauge interaction at the low-energy scale. Its thermal relic can explain the observed amount of dark matter consistently with other cosmological and astrophysical constraints. We discuss that a nonze…
Can dark matter be stabilized by charge conservation, just as the electron is in the standard model? We examine the possibility that dark matter is hidden, that is, neutral under all standard model gauge interactions, but charged under an exact U(1) gauge symmetry of the hidden sector. Such candidates are predicted in WIMPless models, supersymmetric models in which hidden dark matter has the desired thermal relic density for a wide range of masses. Hidden charged dark matter has many novel properties not shared by neutral dark matter: (1) bound state formation and Sommerfeld-enhanced annihilat…
A minimal model of Cold Dark Matter (CDM) is a very massive particle with only gravitational interactions, also called Planckian Interacting Dark Matter (PIDM). Here we consider an extension of the PIDM framework by an unbroken $U(1)$ gauge symmetry under which the PIDM is charged, but remains only gravitationally coupled to the Standard Model (SM). Contrary to "hidden charged dark matter", the charged PIDM never reaches thermal equilibrium with the SM. The dark sector is populated by freeze-in via gravitational interactions at reheating. If the dark fine-structure constant $α_D$ is larger tha…
We consider constraints on simplified models in which scalar dark matter annihilates to light charged leptons through the exchange of charged mediators. We find that loop diagrams will contribute corrections to the magnetic and electric dipole moments of the light charged leptons, and experimental constraints on these corrections place significant bounds on the dark matter annihilation cross section. In particular, annihilation to electrons with an observable cross section would be ruled out, while annihilation to muons is only permitted if the dominant contributions arise from CP-violating in…
In 2005 Sheldon Glashow has proposed his sinister model, opening the path to composite-dark-matter scenarios, in which heavy stable electrically charged particles bound in neutral atoms play the role of dark matter candidates. Though the general problem of new stable single charged particles, forming with ordinary electrons anomalous isotopes of hydrogen, turned out to be unresolvable in Glashow's scenario, this scenario stimulated development of composite dark matter models, which can avoid the trouble of anomalous isotope overproduction. In the simplest case composite dark matter may consist…
A spatially uniform vector condensate can be formed during inflation if the vector boson is coupled to the inflaton through nontrivial kinetic function. The coherent oscillation of such a massive vector boson is a dark matter candidate. In this paper we consider the case where the vector boson energy density increases during inflation and show that the curvature/isocurvature perturbation gives stringent constraint on this scenario.
If there is a scalar boson field interacting dominantly with a quark or a lepton in the thermal background, its coherent oscillation can be generated through the thermal effect and becomes a good dark matter candidate in a wide range of the coupling and masses. We describe the general features of this mechanism and analyze how it works in various situations considering asymptotic limits where analytic solutions can be obtained.
We consider the model of composite dark matter assuming stable particles of charge $-2$ bound with primordial helium nuclei by Coulomb force in $O$He atoms. We study capture of such dark atoms in matter and propose a possibility of existence of stable $O$-enriched superheavy nuclei and $O$-nuclearites, in which heavy $O$-dark matter fermions are bound by electromagnetic forces with ordinary nuclear matter. $O$He atoms accumulation in stars and its possible effect in stellar evolution is also considered, extending the set of indirect probes for composite dark matter.
The density profiles of dark matter halos are often modeled by an approximate solution to the isothermal Lane-Emden equation with suitable boundary conditions at the origin. It is shown here that such a model corresponds to an exact solution of the Einstein-Maxwell equations for exotic charged dust. It is also shown that, because of its necessarily very small charge to mass ratio, the fact that the particles are charged does not necessarily rule out such material as a candidate for dark matter.
The epoch of the formation of the first stars, known as the cosmic dawn, has emerged as a new arena in the search for dark matter. In particular, the first claimed 21-cm detection exhibits a deeper global absorption feature than expected, which could be caused by a low baryonic temperature, and has been interpreted as a sign for electromagnetic interactions between baryons and dark matter. This hypothesis has a striking prediction: large temperature anisotropies sourced by the velocity-dependent cooling of the baryons. However, in order to remain consistent with the rest of cosmological observ…
The nonbaryonic dark matter of the Universe is assumed to consist of new stable forms of matter. Their stability reflects symmetry of micro world and particle candidates for cosmological dark matter are the lightest particles that bear new conserved quantum numbers. Dark matter candidates can appear in the new families of quarks and leptons and the existence of new stable charged leptons and quarks is possible, if they are hidden in elusive "dark atoms". Such possibility, strongly restricted by the constraints on anomalous isotopes of light elements, is not excluded in scenarios that predict s…
We provide conservative bounds on the dark matter cross-section and lifetime from final state radiation produced by annihilation or decay into charged leptons, either directly or via an intermediate particle $ϕ$. Our analysis utilizes the experimental gamma-ray flux upper limits from four Milky Way dwarf satellites: HESS observations of Sagittarius and VERITAS observations of Draco, Ursa Minor, and Willman 1. Using 90% confidence level lower limits on the integrals over the dark matter distributions, we find that these constraints are largely unable to rule out dark matter annihilations or dec…
We consider a simplified model in which Majorana fermion dark matter annihilates to charged fermions through exchange of charged mediators. We consider the gamma-ray signals arising from the processes $XX \rightarrow \bar f f γ$, $γγ$, and $γZ$ in the most general case, including non-trivial fermion mass and non-trivial left-right mixing and $CP$-violating phase for the charged mediators. In particular, we find the most general spectrum for internal bremsstrahlung, which interpolates between the regimes dominated by virtual internal bremsstrahlung and by final state radiation. We also examine …
We analyze the direct detection signals of a toy model consisting of a Dirac dark matter particle which couples to one Standard Model fermion via a scalar mediator. For all scenarios, the dark matter particle scatters off nucleons via one loop-induced electromagnetic and electroweak moments, as well as via the one-loop exchange of a Higgs boson. Besides, and depending on the details of the model, the scattering can also be mediated at tree level via the exchange of the scalar mediator or at one loop via gluon-gluon interactions. We show that, for thermally produced dark matter particles, the c…
In the light of recent possible tensions in the Hubble constant $H_0$ and the structure growth rate $σ_8$ between the Planck and other measurements, we investigate a hidden-charged dark matter (DM) model where DM interacts with hidden chiral fermions, which are charged under the hidden SU(N) and U(1) gauge interactions. The symmetries in this model assure these fermions to be massless. The DM in this model, which is a Dirac fermion and singlet under the hidden SU(N), is also assumed to be charged under the U(1) gauge symmetry, through which it can interact with the chiral fermions. Below the c…
From various cosmological, astrophysical and terrestrial requirements, we derive conservative upper bounds on the present-day fraction of the mass of the Galactic dark matter (DM) halo in charged massive particles (CHAMPs). If dark matter particles are neutral but decay lately into CHAMPs, the lack of detection of heavy hydrogen in sea water and the vertical pressure equilibrium in the Galactic disc turn out to put the most stringent bounds. Adopting very conservative assumptions about the recoiling velocity of CHAMPs in the decay and on the decay energy deposited in baryonic gas, we find that…
We consider a decaying magnetic dark matter explaining the X-ray line at 3.55 keV shown recently from XMM-Newton observations. We introduce two singlet Majorana fermions that have almost degenerate masses and fermion-portal couplings with a charged scalar of weak scale mass. In our model, an approximate Z_2 symmetry gives rise to a tiny transition magnetic moment between the Majorana fermions at one loop. The heavier Majorana fermion becomes a thermal dark matter due to the sizable fermion-portal coupling to the SM charged fermions. We find the parameter space for the masses of dark matter and…
We consider cosmological models where dark matter is charged under a dark Abelian gauge field. This new interaction is repulsive and competes with gravity on large scales and in the dynamics of galaxies and clusters. We focus on non-linear models of dark electrodynamics where the effects of the new force are screened within a K-mouflage radius that helps avoiding traditional constraints on charged dark matter models. We discuss the background cosmology of these models in a Newtonian approach and show the equivalence with relativistic Lemaître models where an inhomogeneous pressure due to the e…
We consider the production of a new MeV-scale fermion in coherent elastic neutrino-nucleus scattering. The effect on the measurable nucleon recoil spectrum is calculated. Assuming that the new fermion couples to neutrinos and quarks via a singlet scalar, we set limits on its mass and coupling using COHERENT data and also determine the sensitivity of the CONUS experiment. We investigate the possible connection of the new fermion to neutrino mass generation. The possibility of the new fermion being the dark matter particle is also studied.
We leverage the CP violation in charged $B$ meson decays to generate the observed baryon asymmetry and dark matter at $\mathcal{O}(10 \text{ MeV})$ temperatures. We realize this in two scenarios: $B_c^+$ Mesogenesis and $B^+$ Mesogenesis. In the first, CP violating $B_c^\pm$ decays to $B^\pm$ mesons are followed by decays to dark and Standard Model baryons. In the second, CP violating $B^\pm$ decays to lighter charged mesons are accompanied by the latter's decays to dark and Standard Model leptons, which then scatter into the baryon asymmetry. $B_c^+$ Mesogenesis is actively being probed at Be…
The Holographic Space-time (HST) model of inflation has a potential explanation for dark matter as tiny primordial black holes. Motivated by a recent paper of Barrau\cite{barrau} we propose a version of this model where some of the Inflationary Black Holes (IBHs), whose decay gives rise to the Hot Big Bang, carry the smallest value of a discrete symmetry charge. The fraction $f$ of IBHs carrying this charge is difficult to estimate from first principles, but we fix it by requiring that the crossover between radiation and matter domination occurs at the correct temperature $T_{eq} \sim 1 eV = 1…
In this Letter, we investigate the effects of dark energy on $P-V$ criticality of charged AdS black holes by considering the case of the RN-AdS black holes surrounded by quintessence. By treating the cosmological constant as thermodynamic pressure, we study its thermodynamics in the extended phase space. It is shown that quintessence dark energy does not affect the existence of small/large black hole phase transition. For the case $ω_q=-2/3$ we derive analytic expressions of critical physical quantities, while for cases $ω_q\neq-2/3$ we appeal to numerical method for help. It is shown that qui…
We investigate simplified dark matter models where the dark matter candidate is a Dirac fermion charged only under a new gauge symmetry. In this context one can understand dynamically the stability of the dark matter candidate and the annihilation through the new gauge boson is not velocity suppressed. We present the simplest Dirac dark matter model charged under the local B-L gauge symmetry. We discuss in great detail the theoretical predictions for the annihilation into two photons, into the Standard Model Higgs and a photon, and into the Z gauge boson and a photon. Our analytical results ca…
The luminosity-redshift relation of cosmological standard candles provides information about the relative energy composition of our Universe. In particular, the observation of type Ia supernovae up to redshift of z~2 indicate a universe which is dominated today by dark matter and dark energy. The propagation distance of light from these sources is of the order of the Hubble radius and serves as a very sensitive probe of feeble inelastic photon interactions with background matter, radiation or magnetic fields. In this paper we discuss the limits on mini-charged particle models arising from a di…
We present a testable mechanism of low-scale baryogenesis and dark matter production in which neither baryon nor lepton number are violated. Charged $D$ mesons are produced out-of-equilibrium at tens of MeV temperatures. The $D$ mesons quickly undergo CP-violating decays to charged pions, which then decay into dark-sector leptons without violating lepton number. To transfer this lepton asymmetry to the baryon asymmetry, the dark leptons scatter on additional dark-sector states charged under lepton and baryon number. Amusingly, this transfer proceeds without electroweak sphalerons, which are no…
In this work, we have studied the accretion of $(n+2)$-dimensional charged BTZ black hole (BH). The critical point and square speed of sound have been obtained. The mass of the BTZ BH has been calculated and we have observed that the mass of the BTZ BH is related with square root of the energy density of dark energy which accretes onto BH in our accelerating FRW universe. We have assumed modified Chaplygin gas (MCG) as a candidate of dark energy which accretes onto BH and we have found the expression of BTZ BH mass. Since in our solution of MCG, this model generates only quintessence dark ener…
Trace charge imbalances can explain puzzling cosmological observations such as the large `missing' fraction of electrons in cosmic rays and their contrast to the charge-neutral solar wind, the extreme energy sources that sustain pulsars, quasars, galactic jets and active galactic nuclei (AGN), the origin and nature of `dark matter' galaxy haloes, and the apparent acceleration of the expansion of the Universe. When there are $\sim \num{9e-19}$ amounts of excess $\ce{H3+}$ or $\ce{H-}$ within cold diffuse clouds of $\ce{H2}$, residual repulsive Coulomb forces between these few unbalanced charges…
