Asymmetric cannibal dark matter with Z3-symmetric 3→2 interactions depletes in neutron star cores, producing observable heating signatures that constrain dark matter parameters beyond standard annihilation models.
Dark Kinetic Heating of Neutron Stars and An Infrared Window On WIMPs, SIMPs, and Pure Higgsinos
11 Pith papers cite this work. Polarity classification is still indexing.
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Pith papers citing it
abstract
We identify a largely model-independent signature of dark matter interactions with nucleons and electrons. Dark matter in the local galactic halo, gravitationally accelerated to over half the speed of light, scatters against and deposits kinetic energy into neutron stars, heating them to infrared blackbody temperatures. The resulting radiation could potentially be detected by the James Webb Space Telescope, the Thirty Meter Telescope, or the European Extremely Large Telescope. This mechanism also produces optical emission from neutron stars in the galactic bulge, and X-ray emission near the galactic center, because dark matter is denser in these regions. For GeV - PeV mass dark matter, dark kinetic heating would initially unmask any spin-independent or spin-dependent dark matter-nucleon cross-sections exceeding $2 \times 10^{-45}$ cm$^2$, with improved sensitivity after more telescope exposure. For lighter-than-GeV dark matter, cross-section sensitivity scales inversely with dark matter mass because of Pauli blocking; for heavier-than-PeV dark matter, it scales linearly with mass as a result of needing multiple scatters for capture. Future observations of dark sector-warmed neutron stars could determine whether dark matter annihilates in or only kinetically heats neutron stars. Because inelastic inter-state transitions of up to a few GeV would occur in relativistic scattering against nucleons, elusive inelastic dark matter like pure Higgsinos can also be discovered.
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background 4representative citing papers
The nuclear star cluster around Sgr A* is the dominant source of gravitationally boosted dark matter in the Milky Way, with particles up to ~25,000 km/s that enhance sub-GeV detection prospects independently of the DM model.
Bose-Einstein condensate formation in neutron stars enhances dark matter annihilation by 10^15-10^20, allowing freeze-in models to produce observable heating and probe neutrino-fog scattering cross-sections.
Super-Kamiokande data constrains the DM-electron scattering cross-section for leptophilic dark matter to ~4e-41 cm2 below 100 GeV, exceeding direct detection by over an order of magnitude.
Steep matter-density gradients in neutron stars can produce neutrino-antineutrino pairs analogous to the Schwinger effect.
DM admixture in isentropic neutron stars can mimic quark-matter conformality signatures via competition between thermal effects and dark sector softening.
Muonphilic portals to fermionic asymmetric dark matter are constrained by existing data and can be probed further by 3 and 10 TeV muon colliders.
Observation of neutron stars at 1000-1200 K could constrain asymmetric dark matter self-interaction cross-sections by two orders of magnitude beyond bullet cluster limits.
Dipole dark matter produced by freeze-out or freeze-in, including entropy dilution from reheating, can be probed via neutron star heating due to momentum-dependent electromagnetic interactions.
DM-heated neutron stars in the Galactic Center reach equilibrium temperatures of 10^4-10^6 K but their emission is below detection thresholds due to extinction.
citing papers explorer
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Asymmetric Cannibal Dark Matter: Constraints from Neutron Star
Asymmetric cannibal dark matter with Z3-symmetric 3→2 interactions depletes in neutron star cores, producing observable heating signatures that constrain dark matter parameters beyond standard annihilation models.
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Boosted Dark Matter from Sagittarius A$^\star$
The nuclear star cluster around Sgr A* is the dominant source of gravitationally boosted dark matter in the Milky Way, with particles up to ~25,000 km/s that enhance sub-GeV detection prospects independently of the DM model.
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Probing freeze-in dark matter using Bose-Einstein condensate in neutron star
Bose-Einstein condensate formation in neutron stars enhances dark matter annihilation by 10^15-10^20, allowing freeze-in models to produce observable heating and probe neutrino-fog scattering cross-sections.
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Super-Kamiokande Strongly Constrains Leptophilic Dark Matter Capture in the Sun
Super-Kamiokande data constrains the DM-electron scattering cross-section for leptophilic dark matter to ~4e-41 cm2 below 100 GeV, exceeding direct detection by over an order of magnitude.
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Gradient-Produced Neutrinos
Steep matter-density gradients in neutron stars can produce neutrino-antineutrino pairs analogous to the Schwinger effect.
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Observables and conformal properties of dark matter admixed isentropic neutron stars
DM admixture in isentropic neutron stars can mimic quark-matter conformality signatures via competition between thermal effects and dark sector softening.
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Muonphilic asymmetric dark matter at a future muon collider
Muonphilic portals to fermionic asymmetric dark matter are constrained by existing data and can be probed further by 3 and 10 TeV muon colliders.
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Constraining dark matter self-interaction from kinetic heating in neutron stars
Observation of neutron stars at 1000-1200 K could constrain asymmetric dark matter self-interaction cross-sections by two orders of magnitude beyond bullet cluster limits.
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Neutron stars as thermometers for reheating induced dipole dark matter
Dipole dark matter produced by freeze-out or freeze-in, including entropy dilution from reheating, can be probed via neutron star heating due to momentum-dependent electromagnetic interactions.
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Thermal emission from dark matter-heated neutron stars in the Galactic Center
DM-heated neutron stars in the Galactic Center reach equilibrium temperatures of 10^4-10^6 K but their emission is below detection thresholds due to extinction.
- Minimal dark $SU(2)$ origin of a massless Dirac neutrino