Direct Constraints on Strongly Interacting Dark Matter from the James Webb Space Telescope

Area of Science:

• Astrophysics and Particle Physics
• Cosmic Microwave Background Radiation
• Dark Matter Detection

Background:

• Direct-detection dark matter experiments struggle with particles that interact strongly with ordinary matter.
• These strongly interacting particles are attenuated by Earth's atmosphere and crust, evading detection.
• Novel methods are needed to probe dark matter candidates that interact with ordinary matter.

Purpose of the Study:

• To derive new constraints on sub-GeV dark matter candidates that scatter off electrons.
• To utilize "dark" calibration images from the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) Near-Infrared Spectrograph (NIRSpec).
• To explore dark matter models involving interactions with ultralight dark photons.

Main Methods:

• Analysis of "dark" calibration images from JWST's NIRSpec HgCdTe detectors.
• Implementation of additional masks in the JWST analysis pipeline to mitigate high-energy background events.
• Derivation of constraints on dark matter-electron scattering cross-sections.

Main Results:

• Novel constraints are placed on sub-GeV dark matter candidates that scatter off electrons.
• Previously allowed parameter space at high cross-sections is disfavored for a 0.4% dark matter subcomponent interacting with an ultralight dark photon.
• Parameter regions for subcomponent fractions as low as approximately 0.01% are constrained.

Conclusions:

• JWST observations provide a powerful new avenue for probing dark matter.
• The study demonstrates the potential of astrophysical instruments for particle physics discoveries.
• These findings significantly narrow the parameter space for certain dark matter models.