English

Constraints on superheavy dark matter decaying into $h\nu$, $Z\nu$ and $W\ell$ -- Benchmark example within an extended seesaw framework

High Energy Physics - Phenomenology 2025-09-16 v2

Abstract

Dark matter particles could be superheavy (mass MX109 M_X\gtrsim10^9~GeV) provided that their lifetime τX\tau_X is extremely long, i.e. greater than 1022 \simeq 10^{22}~yr. Such stringent constraints on τX\tau_X are generally obtained by limiting the prompt emission of ultrahigh energy (109 \gtrsim10^9~GeV) gamma rays and neutrinos from the decay processes to below the corresponding flux upper bounds. In this paper, we show that even more severe bounds can be obtained for MX1013 M_X\gtrsim10^{13}~GeV from the synchrotron radiation of electron decay byproducts in the Galaxy. We illustrate the power of these constraints using generic Higgs-induced hνh\nu and gauge-induced Zν/WZ\nu/W\ell decay channels, motivated by particle-physics setups invoking right-handed neutrinos. As a concrete benchmark, we consider a superheavy dark-matter candidate within an extended type-I seesaw framework and show that the lower bounds on lifetime can be translated into upper bounds on a mass-mixing parameter δM\delta M, which must satisfy approximately δM2×1017/[MX/(109 GeV)]0.5\delta M\lesssim 2\times 10^{-17}/[M_X/(10^9~\mathrm{GeV})]^{0.5}~GeV for MX109M_X\gtrsim 10^9~GeV. Some implications in the context of inflationary cosmologies are discussed.

Keywords

Cite

@article{arxiv.2408.17111,
  title  = {Constraints on superheavy dark matter decaying into $h\nu$, $Z\nu$ and $W\ell$ -- Benchmark example within an extended seesaw framework},
  author = {O. Deligny},
  journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:2408.17111},
  year   = {2025}
}

Comments

9 pages, 3 figures, submitted to EPJ C