Directly Detecting Signals from Absorption of Fermionic Dark Matter

Area of Science:

• Particle Physics
• Cosmology
• Astrophysics

Background:

• Dark matter remains one of the biggest mysteries in physics.
• Current detection methods primarily focus on scattering interactions.
• Fermionic dark matter models require specific interaction types for detection.

Purpose of the Study:

• To propose and analyze a new class of direct detection signals for fermionic dark matter.
• To explore the detectability of fermionic dark matter absorption in current and future experiments.
• To investigate constraints on the properties of such dark matter, including its lifetime and abundance.

Main Methods:

• Enumeration of dimension-six operators leading to fermionic dark matter absorption.
• Analysis of direct detection prospects for these absorption signals.
• Study of additional constraints, such as the suppression scale and dark matter lifetime.
• Consistency checks with observed dark matter abundance and experimental sensitivities.

Main Results:

• Identified fermionic dark matter absorption as a viable direct detection signal.
• Demonstrated that such dark matter, though inherently unstable, can be detected.
• Showed that signals are consistent with cosmological observations and experimental constraints.
• Highlighted the potential for future experiments to probe unexplored parameter space for sub-GeV dark matter.

Conclusions:

• Fermionic dark matter absorption offers a new avenue for direct detection.
• Dedicated searches can significantly expand our understanding of dark matter properties.
• This research opens up new possibilities for discovering low-mass dark matter particles.