Related papers: QCD axion dark matter and the cosmic dipole proble…
The axion particle, a consequence of an elegant hypothesis that resolves the strong-CP problem of quantum chromodynamics, is a plausible origin for cosmological dark matter. In searches for axionic dark matter that detect the conversion of…
The dark dimension scenario, which is motivated from Swampland principles and predicts a single micron scale extra dimension, suggests a consistent framework for the dark sector of the universe. We consider the implications of this scenario…
An ultra-light axion with CP violating interactions with a dark sector and CP preserving interactions with the visible sector can act as a novel portal between dark matter and the Standard Model. In such theories, dark matter sources an…
We propose a mechanism to generate Primordial Black Holes (PBHs) which is independent of cosmological inflation and occurs slightly below the QCD phase transition. Our setup relies on the collapse of long-lived string-domain wall networks…
The QCD axion can solve the Strong CP Problem and be the dark matter of our universe. If the PQ symmetry breaking scale associated with the axion is below the inflationary reheating temperature, axion strings and domain walls populate the…
Axions have long been considered plausible candidates for dark matter. The axion dark matter emitted from cosmic strings after the Peccei-Quinn (PQ) symmetry breaking in the early Universe was extensively simulated. In this work, we study…
The QCD axion needs not be an exact pseudoscalar for solving the strong CP problem. Its imperfectness can play a profound role cosmologically. We propose effective operators, where the Peccei-Quinn field linearly couples to Standard Model…
Two of the most pressing questions in physics are the microscopic nature of the dark matter that comprises 84% of the mass in the universe and the absence of a neutron electric dipole moment. These questions would be resolved by the…
Cosmology and particle physics are deeply interrelated. Among the common problems are dark energy, dark matter and baryon asymmetry of the Universe. We discuss these problems in general terms, and concentrate on several particular…
The North American Nanohertz Observatory for Gravitational Waves (NANOGrav) collaboration has recently reported strong evidence for a stochastic process affecting the 12.5 yr dataset of pulsar timing residuals. We show that the signal can…
The axion has emerged in recent years as a leading particle candidate to provide the mysterious dark matter in the cosmos, as we review here for a general scientific audience. We describe first the historical roots of the axion in the…
The supersymmetrized DFSZ axion model is especially compelling in that it contains 1. the SUSY solution to the gauge hierarchy problem, 2. the Peccei-Quinn (PQ) solution to the strong CP problem and 3. the Kim-Nilles solution to the SUSY mu…
The clockwork axion refers to a family of aligned multi-axion models that lead to an exponential hierarchy between the scale of Peccei-Quinn symmetry breaking and the scale of the axion decay constant. The clockworking can bring the…
The axion arises in well-motivated extensions of the Standard Model of particle physics and is regarded as an alternative to the weakly interacting massive particle paradigm to explain the nature of dark matter. In this contribution, we…
We show that dark matter can be accounted for by an axion that solves the strong CP problem, but is much lighter than usual due to a $Z_\mathcal{N}$ symmetry. The whole mass range from the canonical QCD axion down to the ultra-light regime…
We discuss current cosmological constraints on axions, as well as future sensitivities. Bounds on axion hot dark matter are discussed first, and subsequently we discuss both current and future sensitivity to models in which axions play the…
Current upper bounds of the neutron electric dipole moment constrain the physically observable quantum chromodynamic (QCD) vacuum angle $|\bar\theta| \lesssim 10^{-11}$. Since QCD explains vast experimental data from the 100 MeV scale to…
In a recent paper we pointed out that supermassive black holes, with masses ranging from $10^5$ to $10^{10} M_\odot$ form naturally at cosmic dawn if the dark matter is QCD axions or axion-like particles with mass $m > 10^{-16}\,…
The hypothesis of an `invisible' axion was made by Misha Shifman and others, approximately thirty years ago. It has turned out to be an unusually fruitful idea, crossing boundaries between particle physics, astrophysics and cosmology. An…
Despite their tremendous successes, modern-day cosmology and particle physics harbor a variety of unresolved mysteries. Two of the biggest are the origin of the baryon asymmetry of the Universe and the existence and nature of dark matter.…