Scattering Searches for Dark Matter in Subhalos: Neutron Stars, Cosmic Rays, and Old Rocks

In many cosmologies dark matter clusters on subkiloparsec scales and forms compact subhalos, in which the majority of Galactic dark matter could reside. Null results in direct detection experiments since their advent four decades ago could then be the result of extremely rare encounters between the Earth and these subhalos. We investigate alternative and promising means to identify subhalo dark matter interacting with standard model particles: (1) subhalo collisions with old neutron stars can transfer kinetic energy and brighten the latter to luminosities within the reach of imminent infrared, optical, and ultraviolet telescopes; we identify new detection strategies involving single-star measurements and Galactic disk surveys, and obtain the first bounds on self-interacting dark matter in subhalos from the coldest known pulsar, PSR J2144-3933; (2) subhalo dark matter scattering with cosmic rays results in detectable effects; (3) historic Earth-subhalo encounters can leave dark matter tracks in Paleolithic minerals deep under-ground. These searches could discover dark matter subhalos weighing between gigaton and solar masses, with corresponding dark matter cross sections and masses spanning tens of orders of magnitude.

Automated summary

This article explores alternative methods to identify subhalo dark matter interacting with standard model particles, including using neutron star collisions, cosmic ray scattering, and dark matter tracks in ancient underground minerals. These searches can discover subhalos of dark matter with a range of masses and obtain constraints on self-interacting dark matter.