Related papers: The Dark Matter Enigma
The physical nature of most of the gravitating mass in the universe is completely mysterious. The astrophysical evidence for the presence of this dark matter and astrophysical constraints on its properties will be reviewed. The most popular…
Dark matter is one of the pillars of the current standard model of structure formation: it is assumed to constitute most of the matter in the Universe. However, it can so far only be probed indirectly through its gravitational effects, and…
The complementarity of direct, indirect and collider searches for dark matter has improved our understanding concerning the properties of the dark matter particle. I will review the basic concepts that these methods rely upon and highlight…
In an introductory manner, the nature of dark energy is addressed, how it is observed and what further tests are needed to reconstruct its properties. Several theoretical approaches to dark energy will be discussed. Finally, the dark…
One of the most puzzling problems of modern physics is the identification of the nature a non-relativistic matter component present in the universe, contributing to more than 25$\%$ of the total energy budget, known as Dark Matter. Weakly…
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 problem of explaining the acceleration of the expansion of the universe and the observational and theoretical difficulties associated with dark matter and dark energy are discussed. The possibility that Einstein gravity does not…
Without observational or theoretical modifications, Newtonian and general relativity seem to be unable to explain gravitational behavior of large structure of the universe. The assumption of dark matter solves this problem without modifying…
About one-fourth of the universe is thought to consist of dark matter. Yet there is no clear understanding about the nature of these particles. Commonly discussed dark matter candidates includes the so called WIMPs or weakly interacting…
Although well established observations on cosmological, cluster, and galactic scales strongly suggest the existence of dark matter (DM), our understanding of its non-gravitational properties is still lacking. I review basic aspects of…
Observations in the optical, in X-rays, and gravitational lensing of galaxies, clusters of galaxies, and large-scale structure are beginning to provide clues to the dark matter problem. I review the impact of these observations on some of…
We investigate several varying-mass dark-matter particle models in the framework of phantom cosmology. We examine whether there exist late-time cosmological solutions, corresponding to an accelerating universe and possessing dark energy and…
We review some recent determinations of the amount of dark matter on galactic, cluster, and large scales, noting some puzzles and their possible resolutions. We discuss the interpretation of big bang nucleosynthesis for dark matter, and…
Introduction to the meaning of dark matter and a few historical gestures. What it is? By what the dark matter is formed? Experimental phenomenon evidences and relative explanation under the point of view of the physics of the elementary…
The lack of confirmation for the existence of supersymmetric particles and Weakly Interacting Massive Particles (WIMPs) appeals to extension of the field of studies of the physical nature of dark matter, involving non-supersymmetric and…
From astronomical observations, we know that dark matter exists, makes up 23% of the mass budget of the Universe, clusters strongly to form the load-bearing frame of structure for galaxy formation, and hardly interacts with ordinary matter…
These lecture notes aim to provide an introduction to dark matter from the perspective of astrophysics/cosmology. We start with a rapid overview of cosmology, including the evolution of the Universe, its thermal history and structure…
The complementarity of direct, indirect and collider searches for dark matter has improved our understanding concerning the properties of the dark matter particle. In this short review, we present a step toward the fundamental nature of…
The challenge of dark matter may be addressed in two ways; by studying the confrontation of structure formation with observation and by direct and indirect searches. In this review, I will focus on those aspects of dark matter that are…
The most studied way to explain the current accelerated expansion of the universe is to assume the existence of dark energy; a new component that fill the universe, does not clumps, currently dominates the evolution, and has a negative…