arXiv subjects

Xiao-Jun Bi

Publications and source records attributed to Xiao-Jun Bi.

At least 109 records · Page 6Linked to original sources

arXiv2017

Interpretations of the DAMPE electron data

The DArk Matter Particle Explorer (DAMPE), a high energy cosmic ray and $γ$-ray detector in space, has recently reported the new measurement of the total electron plus positron flux between 25 GeV and 4.6 TeV. A spectral softening at $\sim0.9$ TeV and a tentative peak at $\sim1.4$ TeV have been reported. We study the physical implications of the DAMPE data in this work. The presence of the spectral break significantly tightens the constraints on the model parameters to explain the electron/positron excesses. The spectral softening can either be explained by the maximum acceleration limits of electrons by astrophysical sources, or a breakdown of the common assumption of continuous distribution of electron sources at TeV energies in space and time. The tentive peak at $\sim1.4$ TeV implies local sources of electrons/positrons with quasi-monochromatic injection spectrum. We find that the cold, ultra-relativistic $e^+e^-$ winds from pulsars may give rise to such a structure. The pulsar is requird to be middle-aged, relatively slowly-rotated, mildly magnetized, and isolated in a density cavity. The annihilation of DM particles ($m_χ\sim1.5$ TeV) into $e^+e^-$ pairs in a nearby clump or an over-density region may also explain the data. In the DM scenario, the inferred clump mass (or density enhancement) is about $10^7-10^8$ M$_\odot$ (or $17-35$ times of the canonical local density) assuming a thermal production cross section, which is relatively extreme compared with the expectation from numerical simulations. A moderate enhancement of the annihilation cross section via, e.g., the Sommerfeld mechanism or non-thermal production, is thus needed.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2017

Explanation of the knee-like feature in the DAMPE cosmic $e^-+e^+$ energy spectrum

The DArk Matter Particle Explorer (DAMPE), a space-based high precision cosmic ray detector, has just reported the new measurement of the total electron plus positron energy spectrum up to 4.6 TeV. A notable feature in the spectrum is the spectral break at $\sim 0.9$ TeV, with the spectral index softening from $-3.1$ to $-3.9$. Such a feature is very similar to the knee at the cosmic nuclei energy spectrum. In this work we propose that the knee-like feature can be explained naturally by assuming that the electrons are accelerated at the supernova remnants (SNRs) and released when the SNRs die out with lifetime around $10^5$ years. The cut-off energy of those electrons have already decreased to several TeV due to radiative cooling, which may induce the observed TeV spectral break. Another possibility is that the break is induced by a single nearby old SNR. Such a scenario may bring a large electron flux anisotropy that is observable by the future detectors. We also show that a minor part of electrons escaping during the acceleration in young and nearby SNRs are able to contribute to several TeV or higher energy region of the spectrum.

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arXiv2017

Status of Natural Supersymmetry from the GmSUGRA in Light of the current LHC Run-2 and LUX data

We study natural supersymmetry in the Generalized Minimal Supergravity (GmSUGRA). For the parameter space with low energy electroweak fine-tuning measures less than 50, we are left with only the $Z$-pole, Higgs-pole and Higgsino LSP scenarios for dark matter (DM). We perform the focused scans for such parameter space and find that it satisfies various phenomenological constraints and is compatible with the current direct detection bound on neutralino DM reported by the LUX experiment. Such parameter space also has solutions with correct DM relic density besides the solutions with DM relic density smaller or larger than 5$σ$ WMAP9 bounds. We present five benchmark points as examples. In these benchmark points, gluino and the first two generations of squarks are heavier than 2 TeV, stop $\tilde t_{1,2}$ are in the mass range $[1,2]$ TeV, while sleptons are lighter than 1 TeV. Some part of the parameter space can explain the muon anomalous magnetic moment within 3$σ$ as well. We also perform the collider study of such solutions by implementing and comparing with relevant studies done by the ATLAS and CMS Collaborations. We find that the points with Higgsino dominant $\tildeχ_2^0/\tilde{χ_1}^\pm$ mass up to $300$ GeV are excluded in $Z$-pole scenario while for Higgs-pole scenario, the points with $\tildeχ_2^0$ mass up to $460$ GeV are excluded. We also notice that the Higgsino LSP points in our present scans are beyond the reach of present LHC searches. Next, we show that for both the $Z$-pole and Higgs-pole scenarios, the points with electroweak fine-tuning measure around 20 do still survive.

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arXiv2017

A dark matter model that reconciles tensions between the cosmic-ray $e^\pm$ excess and the gamma-ray and CMB constraints

The cosmic-ray (CR) $e^\pm$ excess observed by AMS-02 can be explained by dark matter (DM) annihilation. However, the DM explanation requires a large annihilation cross section which is strongly disfavored by other observations, such as the Fermi-LAT gamma-ray observation of dwarf galaxies and the Planck observation of the cosmic microwave background (CMB). Moreover, the DM annihilation cross section required by the CR $e^\pm$ excess is also too large to generate the correct DM relic density with thermal production. In this work we use the Breit-Wigner mechanism with a velocity dependent DM annihilation cross section to reconcile these tensions. If DM particles accounting for the CR $e^\pm$ excess with $v\sim \mathcal{O}(10^{-3})$ are very close to a resonance in the physical pole case, their annihilation cross section in the Galaxy reaches a maximal value. On the other hand, the annihilation cross section would be suppressed for DM particles with smaller relative velocities in dwarf galaxies and at recombination, which may affect the gamma-ray and CMB observations, respectively. We find a proper parameter region that can simultaneously explain the AMS-02 results and the thermal relic density, while satisfying the Fermi-LAT and Planck constraints.

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arXiv2017

Asymmetric Dark Matter Bound State

We propose an interesting framework for asymmetric scalar dark matter (ADM), which has novel collider phenomenology in terms of an unstable ADM bound state (ADMonium) produced via Higgs portals. ADMonium is a natural consequence of the basic features of ADM: the (complex scalar) ADM is charged under a dark local $U(1)_d$ symmetry which is broken at a low scale and provides a light gauge boson $X$. The dark gauge coupling is strong and then ADM can annihilate away into $X$-pair effectively. Therefore, the ADM can form bound state due to its large self-interaction via $X$ mediation. To explore the collider signature of ADMonium, we propose that ADM has a two-Higgs doublet portal. The ADMonium can have a sizable mixing with the heavier Higgs boson, which admits a large cross section of ADMonium production associated with $b\bar b$. The resulting signature at the LHC depends on the decays of $X$. In this paper we consider a case of particular interest: $pp\ra b\bar b+ {\rm ADMonium}$ followed by ${\rm ADMonium}\ra 2X\ra 2e^+e^-$ where the electrons are identified as (un)converted photons. It may provide a competitive explanation to heavy di-photon resonance searches at the LHC.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2017

Measuring Masses in Semi-Invisible Final States at Electron-Positron Colliders

Mass measurement of a particle whose decay products including invisible particles is a challenging task at colliders. For a new physics model involving a dark matter candidate $N$ and a $Z_2$ symmetry that stabilizes it, a typical new process at $e^+e^-$ colliders is the pair production $e^+e^- \to Y\bar{Y}$ followed by decay processes $Y\to aN$ and $\bar{Y}\to b\bar{N}$, where $a$ and $b$ are visible but $N$ is invisible. In this work, we propose a new method to measure the physical masses in this topology by making use of the kinematic equations given by momentum-energy conservation and on-shell conditions. For each event, the solvability of these equations determines a limited region on the trial $m_Y$-$m_N$ plane. The edge of this region can be used to define two variables, $m_Y^\mathrm{edge}$ and $m_N^\mathrm{edge}$, whose distributions are utilized to derive the measurement values of $m_Y$ and $m_N$. The measurement deviations and uncertainties are also estimated after including detector effects and background contamination.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2017

Propagation of cosmic rays in the AMS-02 era

In this work we use the newly reported Boron-to-Carbon ratio (B/C) from AMS-02 and the time-dependent proton fluxes from PAMELA and AMS-02 to constrain the source and propagation parameters of cosmic rays in the Milky Way. A linear correlation of the solar modulation parameter with solar activities is assumed to account for the time-varying cosmic ray fluxes. A comprehensive set of propagation models, with/without reacceleration or convection, have been discussed and compared. We find that only the models with reacceleration can self-consistently fit both the proton and B/C data. The rigidity dependence slope of the diffusion coefficient, $δ$, is found to be about $0.38-0.50$ for the diffusion-reacceleration models. The plain diffusion and diffusion-convection models fit the data poorly. We compare different model predictions of the positron and antiproton fluxes with the data. We find that the diffusion-reacceleration models over-produce low energy positrons, while non-reacceleration models give better fit to the data. As for antiprotons, reacceleration models tend to under-predict low energy antiproton fluxes, unless a phenomenological modification of the velocity-dependence of the diffusion coefficient is applied. Our results suggest that there could be important differences of the propagation for nuclei and leptons, in either the Milky Way or the solar heliosphere.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2016

A systematic study on the cosmic ray antiproton flux

Recently the AMS-02 collaboration has published the measurement of the cosmic antiproton to proton ratio $\bar{p}/p$ and the $\bar{p}$ flux with a high precision up to $\sim 450\,\mathrm{GeV}$. In this work, we perform a systematic analysis of the secondary antiproton flux generated by the cosmic ray interaction with the interstellar gas. The uncertainty of the prediction originates from the cosmic ray propagation process and the hadronic interaction models. Although the cosmic ray propagation parameters have been well controlled by the AMS-02 $B/C$ ratio data for a specified model, different propagation models can not be discriminated by the $B/C$ data. The $\bar{p}$ flux is also calculated for several hadronic interaction models, which are generally adopted by the cosmic ray community. However, the results for different hadronic models do not converge. We find the EPOS LHC model, which seems to fit the collider data very well, predicts a slightly lower $\bar{p}/p$ ratio than the AMS-02 data at the high energy end. Finally we derive the constraints on the dark matter annihilation cross section from the AMS-02 $\bar{p}/p$ ratio for different propagation and hadronic interaction models.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2016

Perspective on the cosmic-ray electron spectrum above TeV

The AMS-02 has measured the cosmic ray electron (plus positron) spectrum up to ~TeV with an unprecedent precision. The spectrum can be well described by a power law without any obvious features above 10 GeV. The satellite instrument Dark Matter Particle Explorer (DAMPE), which was launched a year ago, will measure the electron spectrum up to 10 TeV with a high energy resolution. The cosmic electrons beyond TeV may be attributed to few local cosmic ray sources, such as supernova remnants. Therefore, spectral features, such as cutoff and bumps, can be expected at high energies. In this work we give a careful study on the perspective of the electron spectrum beyond TeV. We first examine our astrophysical source models on the latest leptonic data of AMS-02 to give a self-consistent picture. Then we focus on the discussion about the candidate sources which could be electron contributors above TeV. Depending on the properties of the local sources (especially on the nature of Vela), DAMPE may detect interesting features in the electron spectrum above TeV in the future.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2016

Excesses of Cosmic Ray Spectra from A Single Nearby Source

Growing evidence reveals universal hardening on various cosmic ray spectra, e.g. proton, positron, as well as antiproton fraction. Such universality may indicate they have a common origin. In this paper, we argue that these widespread excesses can be accounted for by a nearby supernova remnant surrounded by a giant molecular cloud. Secondary cosmic rays ($\rm p$, $\rm e^+$) are produced through the collisions between the primary cosmic ray nuclei from this supernova remnant and the molecular gas. Different from the background, which is produced by the ensemble of large amount of sources in the Milky Way, the local injected spectrum can be harder. The time-dependent transport of particles would make the propagated spectrum even harder. Under this scenario, the anomalies of both primary ($\rm p$, $\rm e^-$) and secondary ($\rm e^+$, $\rm \bar{p}/p$) cosmic rays can be properly interpreted. We further show that the TeV to sub-PeV anisotropy of proton is consistent with the observations if the local source is relatively young and lying at the anti-Galactic center direction.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2016

Searching for Singlino-Higgsino Dark Matter in the NMSSM

We study a simplified scenario in the next-to-minimal supersymmetric standard model with a split electroweak spectrum, in which only the singlino and higgsinos are light and other superpartners are decoupled. Serving as a dark matter candidate, a singlino-dominated neutralino $\tildeχ_1^0$ should have either resonant annihilation effects or sizable higgsino components to satisfy the observed relic abundance. The sensitivities of LHC searches and dark matter detection experiments are investigated. With an integrated luminosity of $30 (300) \mathrm{fb}^{-1}$, $3l + E_\mathrm{T} \!\!\!\!\!\!\!/ \;\;\;$and $2l + E_\mathrm{T} \!\!\!\!\!\!\!/ \;\;\;$ searches at the 13 (14) TeV LHC are expected to reach up to $m_{\tildeχ_1^0}\sim 150 (230) \mathrm{GeV}$ and $m_{\tildeχ_2^0,\tildeχ_1^{\pm}}\sim 320 (480) \mathrm{GeV}$. Near future dark matter direct and indirect detection experiments can cover some parameter regions where collider searches lose their sensitivities.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2016

The 750 GeV diphoton excess at the LHC and dark matter constraints

The recent reported 750 GeV diphoton excess at the 13 TeV LHC is explained in the framework of effective field theory assuming the diphoton resonance is a scalar (pseudoscalar) particle. It is found that the large production rate and the broad width of this resonance are hard to simultaneously explain if only visible final states are considered. Therefore an invisible decay channel to dark matter (DM) is strongly favored by the diphoton excess with a broad width, given a large coupling of the new scalar to DM. We set constraints on the parameter space in this scenario using the results from LHC Run 1, DM relic density, and DM direct and indirect detection experiments. We find that the DM searches can exclude a large portion of the parameter regions accounting for the diphoton excess with a broad width.

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arXiv2016

Constraint on the velocity dependent dark matter annihilation cross section from Fermi-LAT observations of dwarf galaxies

The gamma-ray observation of dwarf spheroidal satellites (dSphs) is an ideal approach for probing the dark matter (DM) annihilation signature. The latest Fermi-LAT dSph searches have set stringent constraints on the velocity independent annihilation cross section in the small DM mass range, which gives very strong constraints on the scenario to explain the the AMS-02 positron excess by DM annihilation. However, the dSph constraints would change in the velocity dependent annihilation scenarios, because the velocity dispersion in the dSphs varies from that in the Milky Way. In this work, we use a likelihood map method to set constraints on the velocity dependent annihilation cross section from the Fermi-LAT observation of six dSphs. We consider three typical forms of the annihilation cross section, i.e. p-wave annihilation, Sommerfeld enhancement, and Breit-Wigner resonance. For the p-wave annihilation and Sommerfeld-enhancement, the dSph limits would become much weaker and stronger compared with those for the velocity independent annihilation, respectively. For the Breit-Wigner annihilation, the dSph limits would vary depending on the model parameters. We show that the scenario to explain the AMS-02 positron excess by DM annihilation is still viable in the velocity dependent cases.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2016

Constraints on Dark Matter Annihilation/Decay from the Isotropic Gamma-Ray Background

In this work we study the constraints on dark matter (DM) annihilation/decay from the Fermi-LAT Isotropic Gamma-Ray Background (IGRB) observation. We consider the contributions from both extragalactic and galactic DM components. For DM annihilation, the evolutions of extragalactic DM halos are taken into account. We find that the IGRB constraints under some DM subhalo models can be comparable to those derived from the observations of dwarf spheroidal galaxies. We also use the IGRB results to constrain the parameter regions accounting for the latest AMS-02 electron-positron anomaly. We find that the majority of DM annihilation/decay channels are strongly disfavored by the latest Fermi-LAT IGRB observation; only DM annihilation/decay to $μ^+μ^-$ may be valid.

astro-ph.CO↗

arXiv2015

A Promising Interpretation of Diphoton Resonance at 750 GeV

Recently, an excess of events in diphoton channel with invariant mass of about 750 GeV has been reported by the ATLAS and CMS Collaborations. Considering it as a tantalizing hint for new physics beyond the Standard Model (SM), we propose a simple extension of the SM with an additional doublet Higgs $H^{'}$ and a singlet $s$. We consider the neutral component $H^{\prime }_0$ of $H'$ as the 750 GeV resonance, and assume that $s$ is lighter than 2.6 GeV. In particular, $H^{\prime }_0$ can be produced at tree level via $q{\bar q}$ production, and decay into a pair of $s$ at tree level. And then $s$ can decay into a pair of collimated photons, which cannot be distinguished at the LHC. We show that the diphoton production cross section can be from 3 to 13 ${\rm fb}$, the decay width of $H^{\prime }_0$ can be from 30 to 60 GeV, and all the current experimental constraints including dijet constraint can be satisfied.

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arXiv2015

Implications for dark matter annihilation from the AMS-02 $\bar{p}/p$ ratio

The AMS-02 collaboration has just released the cosmic antiproton to proton ratio $\bar{p}/p$ with a high precision up to $\sim 450$ GeV. In this work, we calculate the secondary antiprotons generated by cosmic ray interactions with the interstellar medium taking into account the uncertainties from the cosmic ray propagation. The $\bar{p}/p$ ratio predicted by these processes shows some tension with the AMS-02 data in some regions of propagation parameters, but the excess is not significant. We then try to derive upper bounds on the dark matter annihilation cross section from the $\bar{p}/p$ data or signal regions favored by the data. It is shown that the constraint derived by the AMS-02 data is similar to that from Fermi-LAT observations of dwarf galaxies. The signal region for dark matter is usually required $m_χ\sim O(10)$ TeV and $\left<σv\right>\sim\mathcal{O}(10^{-23})~\cm^3~\sec^{-1}$.

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arXiv2015

The interpretation for Galactic Center Excess and Electroweak Phase Transition in the NMSSM

The gamma-ray excess observed by the Fermi-LAT in the Galactic Center can be interpreted by the dark matter annihilation to $b\bar{b}$ via a light pseudoscalar in the NMSSM. It is interesting to note that the corresponding singlet scalar is useful to achieve a strongly first order phase transition required by the electroweak baryogenesis. In this paper, we investigate the possibility that the NMSSM model can simultaneously accommodate these two issues. The phase transition strength can be characterized by the vacua energy gap at zero temperature and be sufficiently enhanced by the tree-level effect in the NMSSM. We find that the annihilation of Singlino/Higgsino DM particles occurring close to the light pseudoscalar resonance is favored by the galactic center excess and the observed DM relic density, and a resulting small $κ/λ$ and a negative $A_κ$ can also lead to a successful strongly first order electroweak phase transition.

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arXiv2015

Searches for dark matter signals in simplified models at future hadron colliders

We study the prospect of dark matter (DM) searches in the monojet channel at future $pp$ colliders with center-of-mass energies of 33, 50, and 100~TeV. We consider a class of simplified models in which a vector boson connecting DM particles to quarks is introduced. Comparing with studies in the effective field theory, the present framework gives more reasonable production rates and kinematics of the DM signatures. We estimate the sensitivities of future colliders with an integrated luminosity of 3 $ab^{-1}$ to the DM-induced monojet signature and show the parameter space that can be explored. The constraints from direct and indirect DM detection experiments are compared with the future collider sensitivities. We find that the future collider detection will be much more sensitive than the indirect detection for the vector interaction, and have better sensitivities than those of the direct detection by several orders of magnitude for the axial vector interaction.

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