Gravimeter Search for Compact Dark Matter Objects Moving in the Earth

Area of Science:

• Astrophysics
• Particle Physics
• Geophysics

Background:

• Dark matter constitutes a significant portion of the universe's mass.
• Compact Dark Objects (CDOs) are theoretical candidates for dark matter particles.
• These hypothetical objects could interact weakly with ordinary matter and traverse celestial bodies.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the possibility of Compact Dark Objects (CDOs) as a dark matter candidate.
• To constrain the properties of CDOs by analyzing their potential movement within Earth.
• To utilize gravimeter data to test theoretical models of dark matter composition.

Main Methods:

• Analysis of data from superconducting gravimeters.
• Modeling the orbital dynamics of Compact Dark Objects (CDOs) within Earth's core.
• Calculating the expected gravitational signature of a CDO passing through Earth.

Main Results:

• Gravimeter data effectively rules out the presence of CDOs within Earth under typical mass and orbital radius assumptions.
• The study establishes a stringent upper limit for the product of CDO mass and orbital radius: m_{D}a < 1.2×10^{-13}M_{⊕}R_{⊕}.
• The findings significantly constrain the parameter space for CDO dark matter models.

Conclusions:

• The existence of Compact Dark Objects (CDOs) moving freely within Earth is highly constrained by current gravimeter observations.
• Dark matter is unlikely to be composed of CDOs with properties that would allow them to orbit within Earth.
• Further research may focus on alternative dark matter candidates or CDO properties that evade current detection methods.