arXiv subjects

Argelia Bernal

Publications and source records attributed to Argelia Bernal.

29 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

arXiv2015

Dark matter equation of state from rotational curves of galaxies

In this work we model galactic halos describing the dark matter as a non zero pressure fluid and derive, not impose, a dark matter equation of state by using observational data of the rotation curves of galaxies. In order to reach hydrostatic equilibrium, as expected for the halo, it is mandatory that dark fluid's pressure should not be zero. The equation of state is obtained by solving the matter-geometry system of equations assuming different dark matter density or rotational velocity profiles. The resulting equations of state are, in general, different to a barotropic equation of state. The free parameters of the equation of state are fixed by fitting the observed rotational velocities of a set of galaxies.

astro-ph.CO↗

arXiv2014

Schwarzschild scalar wigs: spectral analysis and late time behavior

Using the Green's function representation technique, the late time behavior of localized scalar field distributions on Schwarzschild spacetimes is studied. Assuming arbitrary initial data we perform a spectral analysis, computing the amplitude of each excited quasi-bound mode without the necessity of performing dynamical evolutions. The resulting superposition of modes is compared with a traditional numerical evolution with excellent agreement; therefore, we have an efficient way to determine final black hole wigs. The astrophysical relevance of the quasi-bound modes is discussed in the context of scalar field dark matter models and the axiverse.

gr-qc↗

arXiv2012

Schwarzschild black holes can wear scalar wigs

We study the evolution of a massive scalar field surrounding a Schwarzschild black hole and find configurations that can survive for arbitrarily long times, provided the black hole or the scalar field mass is small enough. In particular, both ultra-light scalar field dark matter around supermassive black holes and axion-like scalar fields around primordial black holes can survive for cosmological times. Moreover, these results are quite generic, in the sense that fairly arbitrary initial data evolves, at late times, as a combination of those long-lived configurations.

gr-qc↗

arXiv2012

On the mass of ultra-light bosonic dark matter from galactic dynamics

We consider the hypothesis that galactic dark matter is composed of ultra-light scalar particles and use internal properties of dwarf spheroidal galaxies to establish a preferred range for the mass m of these bosonic particles. We re-investigate the problem of the longevity of the cold clump in Ursa Minor and the problem of the rapid orbital decay of the globular clusters in Fornax and dwarf ellipticals. Treating the scalar field halo as a rigid background gravitational potential and using N-body simulations, we have explored how the dissolution timescale of the cold clump in Ursa Minor depends on m. It is demonstrated that for masses in the range 0.3x10^-22 eV < m <1x10^-22 eV, scalar field dark halos without self-interaction would have cores large enough to explain the longevity of the cold clump in Ursa Minor and the wide distribution of globular clusters in Fornax, but small enough to make the mass of the dark halos compatible with dynamical limits. It is encouraging to see that this interval of m is consistent with that needed to suppress the overproduction of substructure in galactic halos and is compatible with the acoustic peaks of cosmic microwave radiation. On the other hand, for self-interacting scalar fields with coupling constant l, values of m^4/l <= 0.55x10^3 eV^4 are required to account for the properties of the dark halos of these dwarf spheroidal galaxies.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2011

Are black holes a serious threat to scalar field dark matter models?

Classical scalar fields have been proposed as possible candidates for the dark matter component of the universe. Given the fact that super-massive black holes seem to exist at the center of most galaxies, in order to be a viable candidate for the dark matter halo a scalar field configuration should be stable in the presence of a central black hole, or at least be able to survive for cosmological time-scales. In the present work we consider a scalar field as a test field on a Schwarzschild background, and study under which conditions one can obtain long-lived configurations. We present a detailed study of the Klein-Gordon equation in the Schwarzschild spacetime, both from an analytical and numerical point of view, and show that indeed there exist quasi-stationary solutions that can remain surrounding a black hole for large time-scales.

gr-qc↗

arXiv2010

Constraining scalar fields with stellar kinematics and collisional dark matter

The existence and detection of scalar fields could provide solutions to long-standing puzzles about the nature of dark matter, the dark compact objects at the centre of most galaxies, and other phenomena. Yet, self-interacting scalar fields are very poorly constrained by astronomical observations, leading to great uncertainties in estimates of the mass $m_ϕ$ and the self-interacting coupling constant $λ$ of these fields. To counter this, we have systematically employed available astronomical observations to develop new constraints, considerably restricting this parameter space. In particular, by exploiting precise observations of stellar dynamics at the centre of our Galaxy and assuming that these dynamics can be explained by a single boson star, we determine an upper limit for the boson star compactness and impose significant limits on the values of the properties of possible scalar fields. Requiring the scalar field particle to follow a collisional dark matter model further narrows these constraints. Most importantly, we find that if a scalar dark matter particle does exist, then it cannot account for both the dark-matter halos and the existence of dark compact objects in galactic nuclei

astro-ph.CO↗

arXiv2010

Bosonic gas as a Galactic Dark Matter Halo

We study in detail the properties of gravitationally-bounded multi-state configurations, made of spin-zero bosons, in the Newtonian regime. We show that the properties of such configurations, in particular their stability, depend upon how the particles are distributed in the different states they are composed of. Numerical techniques are used to distinguish between stable and unstable solutions, and to determine the final configurations they evolve towards to. Multi-state equilibrium configurations can be used as models of galactic halos made of scalar field dark matter, whose rotation curves appear more realistic than in the case of single-state configurations.

gr-qc↗

arXiv2010

Multi-state Boson Stars

Motivated by the increasing interest in models which consider scalar fields as viable dark matter candidates, we have constructed a generalization of relativistic Boson Stars (BS) composed of two coexisting states of the scalar field, the ground state and the first excited state. We have studied the dynamical evolution of these Multi-state Boson Stars (MSBS) under radial perturbations, using numerical techniques. We show that stable MSBS can be constructed, when the number of particles in the first excited state, N2, is smaller than the number of particles in the ground state, N1. On the other hand, when N2 > N1, the configurations are initially unstable. However, they evolve and settle down into stable configurations. In the stabilization process, the initially ground state is excited and ends in a first excited state, whereas the initially first excited state ends in a ground state. During this process, both states emit scalar field radiation, decreasing their number of particles. This behavior shows that even though BS in the first excited state are intrinsically unstable under finite perturbations, the configuration resulting from the combination of this state with the ground state produces stable objects. Finally we show in a qualitative way, that stable MSBS could be realistic models of dark matter galactic halos, as they produce rotation curves that are flatter at large radii than the rotation curves produced by BS with only one state.

gr-qc↗

arXiv2008

Flat Central Density Profiles from Scalar Field Dark Matter Halo

The scalar field endowed with a cosh scalar field potential, behaves exactly in the same way as cold dark matter (CDM) in the region where the scalar field oscillates around its minimum. Also, in the linear regime, the scalar field dark matter (SFDM) hypothesis predicts the same structure formation as the cold dark matter one. This means that CDM and SFDM are equivalent from the cosmological point of view. The free parameters of the SFDM model can be fixed using cosmological observations. In a previous work, we showed by solving the Einstein Klein Gordon equations, that if we use such parameters, the scalar field collapses forming stable objects with a mass around $10^{12}M_{\odot}$. In the present work we use analytical solutions of the flat and weak field limit of the Einstein- Klein-Gordon equations. With this solutions we show that its scalar field density profile corresponds to a halo with an almost flat central density and that this halo coincides with the CDM model in a large outer region. Such a result could solve the problem of the cusp DM halo in galaxies without extra hypothesis, adding to the viability of the SFDM model. Thus, the SFDM model can be seen as an alternative model to the CDM one, with a self interacting WIMP.

astro-ph↗

arXiv2006

Scalar Field Dark Matter: head-on interaction between two structures

In this manuscript we track the evolution of a system consisting of two self-gravitating virialized objects made of a scalar field in the newtonian limit. The Schrödinger-Poisson system contains a potential with self-interaction of the Gross-Pitaevskii type for Bose Condensates. Our results indicate that solitonic behavior is allowed in the scalar field dark matter model when the total energy of the system is positive, that is, the two blobs pass through each other as should happen for solitons; on the other hand, there is a true collision of the two blobs when the total energy is negative.

astro-ph↗

arXiv2006

Scalar Field Dark Matter: non-spherical collapse and late time behavior

We show the evolution of non-spherically symmetric balls of a self-gravitating scalar field in the Newtonian regime or equivalently an ideal self-gravitating condensed Bose gas. In order to do so, we use a finite differencing approximation of the Shcrödinger-Poisson (SP) system of equations with axial symmetry in cylindrical coordinates. Our results indicate: 1) that spherically symmetric ground state equilibrium configurations are stable against non-spherical perturbations and 2) that such configurations of the SP system are late-time attractors for non-spherically symmetric initial profiles of the scalar field, which is a generalization of such behavior for spherically symmetric initial profiles. Our system and the boundary conditions used, work as a model of scalar field dark matter collapse after the turnaround point. In such case, we have found that the scalar field overdensities tolerate non-spherical contributions to the profile of the initial fluctuation.

astro-ph↗