Related papers: Axion as a non-WIMP dark matter candidate
Axions are among the most sought-after candidates for dark matter. In the ultralight regime, they could help alleviate puzzles in small scale cosmology. Searches for a halo of axion dark matter rely on the electromagnetic response to a…
In this master's thesis we study the production of axion dark matter through the so-called misalignment mechanism by considering that during that time, the universe was dominated by a new kind of fluid, different than radiation. We perform…
Axions are produced during a period of dilaton-driven inflation by amplification of quantum fluctuations. We show that for some range of string cosmology parameters and some range of axion masses, primordial axions may constitute a large…
There is a strong possibility that the particles making up the dark matter in the Universe have a mass below 1 eV and in many important situations exhibit a wave-like behavior. Amongst the candidates the axion stands out as particularly…
These lectures are intended to provide a brief pedagogical review of dark matter for the newcomer to the subject. We begin with a discussion of the astrophysical evidence for dark matter. The standard weakly-interacting massive particle…
Cosmology and particle physics are closer today than ever before, with several searches underway at the interface between cosmology, particle physics, and field theory. The mystery of dark matter (DM) is one of the greatest common unsolved…
Axions solve the Strong CP Problem and are a cold dark matter candidate. The combined constraints from accelerator searches, stellar evolution limits and cosmology suggest that the axion mass is in the range $3 \cdot 10^{-3} > m_a >…
Relativistic axions are good candidates for the dark radiation for which there are mounting observational hints. The primordial decays of heavy fields produce axions which are ultra-energetic compared to thermalised matter and inelastic…
The need for dark matter is briefly reviewed. A wealth of observational information points to the existence of a non-baryonic component. To the theoretically favoured candidates today belong axions, supersymmetric particles, and to some…
If primordial black holes (PBHs) had come to dominate the energy density of the early Universe when oscillations in the axion field began, we show that the relic abundance and expected mass range of the QCD axion would be greatly modified.…
The axion is a highly motivated elementary particle which could address two fundamental questions in physics - the strong CP problem and the dark matter mystery. Experimental searches for this hypothetical particle have started to reach…
Axions and axion like particles are very attractive dark matter candidates. In this review, we briefly investigate how the cosmological observations reveal the existence of dark matter and some unique properties of axions/axion like…
This proceedings' contribution explores the rationale behind the axion as a resolution to the strong CP puzzle. It outlines various benchmark axion models and examines their implications, focusing on two key aspects: (i) the axion's…
Axion-like-particles are a well-motivated extension of the Standard Model that can mediate interactions between the dark matter and ordinary matter. Here we consider an axion portal between the two sectors, where the axion couples to dark…
The QCD axion was originally predicted as a dynamical solution to the strong CP problem. Axion like particles (ALPs) are also a generic prediction of many high energy physics models including string theory. Theoretical models for axions are…
After a short review of the arguments for the existence of Particle Dark Matter in the Universe, I list the most plausible candidates provided by particle physics, i.e. neutrinos, axions, and WIMPs. In each case I briefly describe how to…
The existence of dark matter was suggested, using simple gravitational arguments, seventy years ago. Although we are now convinced that most of the mass in the Universe is indeed some non-luminous matter, we still do not know its…
The Axion is a particle arising from the Peccei-Quinn solution to the strong CP problem. Peccei-Quinn symmetry breaking in the early universe could produce a large number of axions which would still be present today, making the axion a…
A new mechanism for producing axion dark matter is proposed. By invoking low-scale inflation and a kinetic mixing between the axion and the inflaton, it is shown that the axion is driven to a field point slightly displaced from the…
Dark matter could be a thermal relic comprised of strongly interacting massive particles (SIMPs), where $3 \rightarrow 2$ interactions set the relic abundance. Such interactions generically arise in theories of chiral symmetry breaking via…