Constraints on spin-dependent dark matter scattering with long-lived mediators from TeV observations of the Sun with HAWC
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
12-15-2018
Abstract
© 2018 authors. Published by the American Physical Society. We analyze the Sun as a source for the indirect detection of dark matter through a search for gamma rays from the solar disk. Capture of dark matter by elastic interactions with the solar nuclei followed by annihilation to long-lived mediators can produce a detectable gamma-ray flux. We search 3 years of data from the High Altitude Water Cherenkov (HAWC) observatory and find no statistically significant detection of TeV gamma-ray emission from the Sun. Using this, we constrain the spin-dependent elastic scattering cross section of dark matter with protons for dark matter masses above 1 TeV, assuming a sufficiently long-lived mediator. The results complement constraints obtained from Fermi-LAT observations of the Sun and together cover WIMP masses between 4 and 106 GeV. In the optimal scenario, the cross-section constraints for mediator decays to gamma rays can be as strong as ∼10-45 cm2, which is more than 4 orders of magnitude stronger than current direct-detection experiments for a 1 TeV dark matter mass. The cross-section constraints at higher masses are even better, nearly 7 orders of magnitude better than the current direct-detection constraints for a 100 TeV dark matter mass. This demonstration of sensitivity encourages detailed development of theoretical models in light of these powerful new constraints.
Publication Title
Physical Review D
Recommended Citation
Albert, A.,
Alfaro, R.,
Alvarez, C.,
Arceo, R.,
Arteaga-Velázquez, J.,
Avila Rojas, D.,
Ayala Solares, H.,
Belmont-Moreno, E.,
Benzvi, S.,
Brisbois, C.,
Caballero-Mora, K.,
Capistrán, T.,
Carramiñana, A.,
Casanova, S.,
Castillo, M.,
Cotzomi, J.,
Coutiño De León, S.,
De León, C.,
De La Fuente, E.,
Dichiara, S.,
Dingus, B.,
Duvernois, M.,
Díaz-Vélez, J.,
Engel, K.,
Enríquez-Rivera, O.,
Espinoza, C.,
Fleischhack, H.,
Fraija, N.,
García-González, J.,
Garfias, F.,
González, M.,
&
Goodman, J.
(2018).
Constraints on spin-dependent dark matter scattering with long-lived mediators from TeV observations of the Sun with HAWC.
Physical Review D,
98(12).
http://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevD.98.123012
Retrieved from: https://digitalcommons.mtu.edu/michigantech-p/10061