arXiv subjects

Carlos E. Yaguna

Publications and source records attributed to Carlos E. Yaguna.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

arXiv2016

Isospin-violating dark matter in the light of recent data

In scenarios where the dark matter interacts differently with protons and neutrons (isospin-violating dark matter), the interpretation of the experimental limits on the dark matter spin-independent cross section may be significantly modified. On the one hand, the direct detection constraints are shifted depending on the target nucleus, possibly changing the hierarchy among different experiments. On the other hand, the relative strength between the bounds from neutrino detectors and those from direct detection experiments is altered, allowing the former to be more competitive. In this paper, the status of isospin-violating dark matter is assessed in the light of recent data, and the prospects for its detection in the near future are analyzed. We find, for example, that there are regions in the parameter space where IceCube currently provides the most stringent limits on the spin-independent cross section, or others where the expected sensitivity of DEAP-3600 is well above the LUX exclusion limit. Our results highlight the complementarity among different targets in direct detection experiments, and between direct detection and neutrino searches in the quest for a dark matter signal.

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arXiv2016

Is the dark matter particle its own antiparticle?

We propose a test based on direct detection data that allows to determine if the dark matter particle is different from its antiparticle. The test requires the precise measurement of the dark matter spin-independent direct detection cross sections off $\mathrm{three}$ different nuclei, and consists of interpreting such signals in terms of self-conjugate (particle $=$ antiparticle) dark matter to see if such interpretation is consistent. If it is not, the dark matter must be different from its antiparticle. We illustrate this procedure for two sets of target nuclei, $\mathrm{\{Xe, Ar, Si\}}$ and $\mathrm{\{Xe, Ar, Ge\}}$, identifying the regions of the parameter space where it is particularly feasible. Our results indicate that future signals in direct detection experiments, if sufficiently accurate, might be used to establish that the dark matter particle is not its own antiparticle --a major step towards the determination of the fundamental nature of the dark matter.

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arXiv2016

A new B-L model without right-handed neutrinos

We propose and study a novel extension of the Standard Model based on the B-L gauge symmetry that can account for dark matter and neutrino masses. In this model, right-handed neutrinos are absent and the gauge anomalies are canceled instead by four chiral fermions with fractional B-L charges. After the breaking of $U(1)_{B-L}$, these fermions arrange themselves into two Dirac particles, the lightest of which is automatically stable and plays the role of the dark matter. We determine the regions of the parameter space consistent with the observed dark matter density and show that they can be partially probed via direct and indirect dark matter detection or collider searches at the LHC. Neutrino masses, on the other hand, can be explained by a variant of the type-II seesaw mechanism involving one of the two scalar fields responsible for the dark matter mass.

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arXiv2016

Gamma-ray Limits on Neutrino Lines

MMonochromatic neutrinos from dark matter annihilations ($χχ\to ν\barν$) are always produced in association with a gamma-ray spectrum generated by electroweak bremsstrahlung. Consequently, these neutrino lines can be searched for not only with neutrino detectors but also indirectly with gamma-ray telescopes. Here, we derive limits on the dark matter annihilation cross section into neutrinos based on recent Fermi-LAT and HESS data. We find that, for dark matter masses above 200 GeV, gamma-ray data actually set the most stringent constraints on neutrino lines from dark matter annihilation and, therefore, an upper bound on the dark matter total annihilation cross section. In addition, we point out that gamma-ray telescopes, unlike neutrino detectors, have the potential to distinguish the flavor of the final state neutrino. Our results indicate that we have already entered into a new era where gamma-ray telescopes are more sensitive than neutrino detectors to neutrino lines from dark matter annihilation.

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arXiv2016

Extending Fermi-LAT and H.E.S.S. Limits on Gamma-ray Lines from Dark Matter Annihilation

Gamma-ray lines from dark matter annihilation ($χχ\to γX$, where $X=γ,h,Z$) are always accompanied, at lower energies, by a continuum gamma-ray spectrum stemming both from radiative corrections ($X=γ$) and from the decay debris of the second particle possibly present in the final state ($X=h,Z$). This model-independent gamma-ray emission can be exploited to derive novel limits on gamma-ray lines that do not rely on the line-feature. Although such limits are not expected to be as stringent, they can be used to probe the existence of $γ$-ray lines for dark matter masses beyond the largest energies accessible to current telescopes. Here, we use continuous gamma-ray searches from Fermi-LAT observations of Milky Way dwarf spheroidal galaxies and from H.E.S.S. observations of the Galactic Halo to extend the limits on the annihilation cross sections into monochromatic photons to dark matter masses well beyond $500$ GeV (Fermi-LAT) and $20$ TeV (H.E.S.S.). In this large mass regime, our results provide the first constraints on $γ$-ray lines from dark matter annihilation.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2016

The CTA aims at the Inert Doublet Model

We show that the Cherenkov Telescope Array (CTA) can realistically challenge the Inert Doublet Model, excluding its heavy regime up to dark matter masses of 800 GeV and probing a large fraction of the remaining viable parameter space at even higher masses. Two features of the Inert Doublet Model make it particularly suitable for CTA searches. First, the dark matter mass (in the heavy regime) must be larger than 500 GeV. Second, the dark matter annihilation cross section, $σv$, is always larger than the thermal one, reaching values as high as $10^{-25} \mathrm{cm^3s^{-1}}$. This higher value of $σv$ is the result of the unavoidable coannhilation effects that determine the relic density via thermal freeze-out in the early Universe. We find that with 100 hours of Galactic Center exposure, CTA's expected limit widely surpasses, even after the inclusion of systematic errors, current and projected bounds from Fermi-LAT and HESS on this model.

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arXiv2016

Lepton flavor violation and scalar dark matter in a radiative model of neutrino masses

We consider a simple extension of the Standard Model that can account for the dark matter and explain the existence of neutrino masses. The model includes a vector-like doublet of SU(2), a singlet fermion, and two scalar singlets, all of them odd under a new Z$_2$ symmetry. Neutrino masses are generated radiatively by one-loop processes involving the new fields, while the dark matter candidate is the lightest neutral particle among them. We focus specifically on the case where the dark matter particle is one of the scalars and its relic density is determined by its Yukawa interactions. The phenomenology of this setup, including neutrino masses, dark matter and lepton flavor violation, is analyzed in some detail. We find that the dark matter mass must be below $500$ GeV to satisfy the relic density constraint. Lepton flavor violating processes are shown to provide the most promising way to test this scenario. Future $μ\to 3e$ and $μ$-$e$ conversion experiments, in particular, have the potential to probe the entire viable parameter space of this model.

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arXiv2016

Direct detection of fermion dark matter in the radiative seesaw model

We consider the scenario in the radiative seesaw model where the dark matter particle is the lightest $Z_2$-odd fermion. We identify the regions of the parameter space of the model compatible with neutrino oscillation data, with the upper limits from rare charged lepton decays and with the observed dark matter abundance via thermal freeze-out, and we compute the dark matter scattering cross section with nuclei via the one-loop exchange of a photon, a $Z^0$-boson or a Higgs boson. We find that the predicted spin-independent cross section lies below the current LUX limit, although, for some choices of parameters, above the expected sensitivity of XENON1T or LZ.

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arXiv2015

Singlet-Doublet Dirac Dark Matter

We analyze a simple extension of the Standard Model where the dark matter particle is a Dirac fermion that is mixture of a singlet and an SU(2) doublet. The model contains only four free parameters: the singlet and the doublet masses and two new Yukawa couplings. Direct detection bounds in this model are very strong and require the dark matter particle to be singlet-like. As a result, its relic density has to be obtained via coannihilations with the doublet. We find that the dark matter mass should be below 750 GeV, that the singlet-doublet mass difference cannot exceed 9%, and that direct detection experiments offer the best chance to probe this scenario. Finally, we also show that this model can effectively arise in well-motivated extensions of the Standard Model.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2015

Scalar dark matter in the B-L model

The B-L extension of the Standard Model requires the existence of right-handed neutrinos and naturally realizes the seesaw mechanism of neutrino mass generation. We study the possibility of explaining the dark matter in this model with an additional scalar field that is a singlet of the Standard Model but charged under $U(1)_{B-L}$. An advantage of this scenario is that the stability of the dark matter can be guaranteed by appropriately choosing its B-L charge, without the need of an extra ad hoc discrete symmetry. We investigate in detail the dark matter phenomenology of this model. We show that the observed dark matter density can be obtained via gauge or scalar interactions, and that semi-annihilations could play an important role in the latter case. The regions consistent with the dark matter density are determined in each instance and the prospects for detection in future experiments are analyzed. If dark matter annihilations are controlled by the B-L gauge interaction, the mass of the dark matter particle should lie below 5 TeV and its direct detection cross section can be easily probed by XENON1T; if instead they are controlled by scalar interactions, the dark matter mass can be much larger and the detection prospects are less certain. Finally, we show that this scenario can be readily extended to accommodate multiple dark matter particles.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2015

Probing the scotogenic model with lepton flavor violating processes

We study the impact that future lepton flavor violating experiments will have on the viable parameter space of the scotogenic model. Within this model, the dark matter particle is assumed to be the lightest singlet fermion and two cases are considered depending on how its relic density is obtained: via self-annihilations or via coannihilations with the scalars. For each case, a scan over the parameter space of the model is used to obtain a large sample of viable points, which we subsequently analyze. We find that future lepton flavor violating experiments, in particular those searching for $μ\to 3e$ and $μ$-$e$ conversion in nuclei, will probe the parameter space of the scotogenic model in a significant way. They may exclude a large fraction of the models where the dark matter density is determined by coannihilations, and could rule out all the models where it is determined by annihilations.

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arXiv2014

Sterile Neutrino Dark Matter and Low Scale Leptogenesis from a Charged Scalar

We show that novel paths to dark matter generation and baryogenesis are open when the Standard Model is extended with three sterile neutrinos $N_i$ and a charged scalar $δ^+$. Specifically, we propose a new production mechanism for the dark matter particle --a multi-keV sterile neutrino, $N_1$-- that does not depend on the active-sterile mixing angle and does not rely on a large primordial lepton asymmetry. Instead, $N_1$ is produced, via freeze-in, by the decays of $δ^+$ while it is in equilibrium in the early Universe. In addition, we demonstrate that, thanks to the couplings between the heavier sterile neutrinos $N_{2,3}$ and $δ^+$, baryogenesis via leptogenesis can be realized close to the electroweak scale. The lepton asymmetry is generated either by $N_{2,3}$-decays for masses $M_{2,3}\gtrsim$ TeV, or by $N_{2,3}$-oscillations for $M_{2,3}\sim$ GeV. Experimental signatures of this scenario include an X-ray line from dark matter decays, and the direct production of $δ^+$ at the LHC. This model thus describes a minimal, testable scenario for neutrino masses, the baryon asymmetry, and dark matter.

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arXiv2014

A minimal model for two-component dark matter

We propose and study a new minimal model for two-component dark matter. The model contains only three additional fields, one fermion and two scalars, all singlets under the Standard Model gauge group. Two of these fields, one fermion and one scalar, are odd under a $Z_2$ symmetry that renders them simultaneously stable. Thus, both particles contribute to the observed dark matter density. This model resembles the union of the singlet scalar and the singlet fermionic models but it contains some new features of its own. We analyze in some detail its dark matter phenomenology. Regarding the relic density, the main novelty is the possible annihilation of one dark matter particle into the other, which can affect the predicted relic density in a significant way. Regarding dark matter detection, we identify a new contribution that can lead either to an enhancement or to a suppression of the spin-independent cross section for the scalar dark matter particle. Finally, we define a set of five benchmarks models compatible with all present bounds and examine their direct detection prospects at planned experiments. A generic feature of this model is that both particles give rise to observable signals in 1-ton direct detection experiments. In fact, such experiments will be able to probe even a subdominant dark matter component at the percent level.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2014

FIMP realization of the scotogenic model

The scotogenic model is one of the simplest scenarios for physics beyond the Standard Model that can account for neutrino masses and dark matter at the TeV scale. It contains another scalar doublet and three additional singlet fermions (N_i), all odd under a Z_2 symmetry. In this paper, we examine the possibility that the dark matter candidate, N_1, does not reach thermal equilibrium in the early Universe so that it behaves as a Feebly Interacting Massive Particle (FIMP). In that case, it is found that the freeze-in production of dark matter is entirely dominated by the decays of the odd scalars. We compute the resulting dark matter abundance and study its dependence with the parameters of the model. The freeze-in mechanism is shown to be able to account for the observed relic density over a wide range of dark matter masses, from the keV to the TeV scale. In addition to freeze-in, the N_1 relic density receives a further contribution from the late decay of the next-to-lightest odd particle, which we also analyze. Finally, we consider the possibility that the dark matter particle is a WIMP but receives an extra contribution to its relic density from the decay of the FIMP (N_1). In this case, important signals at direct and indirect detection experiments are generally expected.

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arXiv2013

Warm and cold fermionic dark matter via freeze-in

The freeze-in mechanism of dark matter production provides a simple and intriguing alternative to the WIMP paradigm. In this paper, we analyze whether freeze-in can be used to account for the dark matter in the so-called singlet fermionic model. In it, the SM is extended with only two additional fields, a singlet scalar that mixes with the Higgs boson, and the dark matter particle, a fermion assumed to be odd under a Z_2 symmetry. After numerically studying the generation of dark matter, we analyze the dependence of the relic density with respect to all the free parameters of the model. These results are then used to obtain the regions of the parameter space that are compatible with the dark matter constraint. We demonstrate that the observed dark matter abundance can be explained via freeze-in over a wide range of masses extending down to the keV range. As a result, warm and cold dark matter can be obtained in this model. It is also possible to have dark matter masses well above the unitarity bound for WIMPs.

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arXiv2013

Detection prospects of singlet fermionic dark matter

A singlet fermion which interacts only with a new singlet scalar provides a viable and minimal scenario that can explain the dark matter. The singlet fermion is the dark matter particle whereas the new scalar mixes with the Higgs boson providing a link between the dark matter sector and the Standard Model. In this paper, we present an updated analysis of this model focused on its detection prospects. Both, the parity-conserving case and the most general case are considered. First, the full parameter space of the model is analyzed, and the regions compatible with the dark matter constraint are obtained and characterized. Then, the implications of current and future direct detection experiments are taken into account. Specifically, we determine the regions of the multidimensional parameter space that are currently excluded and those that are going to be probed by next generation experiments. Finally, indirect detection prospects are discussed and the expected signal at neutrino telescopes is calculated.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2013

Scalar dark matter and fermion coannihilations in the radiative seesaw model

By extending the Standard Model with three right-handed neutrinos (N_i) and a second Higgs doublet (H_2), odd under a Z_2 symmetry, it is possible to explain non-zero neutrino masses and to account for the dark matter. We consider the case where the dark matter is a scalar and study its coannihilations with the right-handed neutrinos. These coannihilations tend to increase, rather than reduce, the dark matter density and they modify in a significant way the viable parameter space of the model. In particular, they allow to satisfy the relic density constraint for dark matter masses well below 500 GeV. The dependence of the relic density on the relevant parameters of the model, such as the dark matter mass, the mass splitting, and the number of coannihilating fermions, is analyzed in detail. We also investigate, via a scan over the parameter space, the new viable regions that are obtained when coannihilations are taken into account. Notably, they feature large indirect detection rates, with sigmav reaching values of order 10^{-24} cm^3/s. Finally, we emphasize that coannihilation effects analogous to those discussed here can be used to reconcile a thermal freeze-out with a large sigmav also in other models of dark matter.

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arXiv2013

Electroweak corrections to the direct detection cross section of inert higgs dark matter

The inert higgs model is a minimal extension of the Standard Model that features a viable dark matter candidate, the so-called inert higgs ($H^0$). In this paper, we compute and analyze the dominant electroweak corrections to the direct detection cross section of dark matter within this model. These corrections arise from one-loop diagrams mediated by gauge bosons that, contrary to the tree-level result, do not depend on the unknown scalar coupling $λ$. We study in detail these contributions and show that they can modify in a significant way the prediction of the spin-independent direct detection cross section. In both viable regimes of the model, $\mh<M_W$ and $\mh\gtrsim 500 \gev$, we find regions where the cross section at one-loop is much larger than at tree-level. We also demonstrate that, over the entire viable parameter space of this model, these new contributions bring the spin-independent cross section within the reach of future direct detection experiments.

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