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SIMPly add a dark photon

4 Pith papers cite this work. Polarity classification is still indexing.

4 Pith papers citing it
abstract

Pions of a dark sector gauge group can be strongly interacting massive particle (SIMP) dark matter, produced by the freeze-out of $3 \to 2$ interactions, with naturally large self-interactions. We study if adding a dark photon to the set-up can do it all: i) maintain thermalization with the visible sector, ii) resonantly enhance the $3\to2$ interactions, thus allowing for a perturbative pion description, and iii) provide a velocity dependent self-interaction that can affect small scale structure formation. For $N_f=3$ this minimal setup is marginally excluded, as the required kinetic mixing is too small to maintain thermal equilibrium with the SM. Adding an extra dark quark opens up parameter space, and -- perhaps somewhat surprisingly -- we find that all bounds can be satisfied for dark pion masses $m_\pi \sim 250-600\,$MeV. Dropping the small scale structure requirement iii), a viable setup is reproduced for dark charges of $\alpha_d = 0.01-1$ and a dark pion mass $m_\pi \geq 30$ MeV. Late time annihilations are non-negligible making the SIMP dark pion a bit WIMPy.

fields

hep-ph 4

years

2026 4

representative citing papers

Production of Magic States via $Z$ Bosons and Dark Photons

hep-ph · 2026-06-30 · unverdicted · novelty 5.0

Magic distributions are computed for EW processes (reproducing QED at low energy, new at high energy/Z resonance) and dark-sector scatterings, reaching maximal magic at mass ratios m_f/m_χ → 0 and → 1.83929.

Axion-Like Electrophilic Portal for Pion Dark Matter

hep-ph · 2026-02-02 · unverdicted · novelty 5.0

A minimal electrophilic ALP portal for SIMP pion dark matter widens the allowed parameter space, making an ALP mass of order 10 MeV viable and consistent with the X17 anomaly.

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Showing 4 of 4 citing papers.