Baryons and Non Conventional Dark Matter

重子和非常规暗物质

• 批准号: RGPIN-2019-05597
• 负责人: VanWaerbeke, Ludovic
• 金额: $ 2.99万
• 依托单位: University of British Columbia
• 依托单位国家: 加拿大
• 项目类别: Discovery Grants Program - Individual
• 财政年份: 2020
• 资助国家: 加拿大
• 起止时间: 2020-01-01 至 2021-12-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nserc-crsng.gc.ca/ase-oro/Details-Detailles_eng.asp?id=715177
• 关键词: Baryons; Non; Conventional; Dark; Matter

The microphysical nature of dark matter (particle mass, number of species, interaction strength) is one of the most fundamental questions in physics. The current paradigm is Cold Dark Matter (CDM), but the archetypal CDM candidates, the Weakly Interactive Massive Particles, still evade direct detection, placing the Standard Model of particle physics in difficulty. Powerful indirect tests of the CDM model focus on the macroscopic mass distribution of Dark Matter in the Universe. In particular, CDM makes a specific prediction about the mass hierarchy of dark matter haloes for halo masses ranging from Earth mass to galactic superclusters. Detecting any deviation from the CDM prediction would be a significant step towards understanding the nature of Dark Matter. This proposal is to develop new statistical approaches to constrain the mass hierarchy of haloes in a new mass regime, down to the mass scale of small galaxies, where the predictions of CDM are the cleanest and strongest. To achieve this, it will use the world's largest current and upcoming astronomical surveys. Critical to this proposal is the Large Synoptic Survey Telescope (LSST), which will be operational in 2 years and which will accumulate data for the next 10 years. Trainees will have a leading role in the proposed projects and short terms objectives will focus on resolving technical issues with instrumental systematics effects and theoretical modeling. A new class of dark matter models, called quark nuggets, is an exciting alternative to CDM in that it predicts a hierarchy of haloes identical to that of CDM, but where dark matter is also strongly interacting with regular matter in baryon rich environments. This research program will investigate the astrophysical signatures of the quark nuggets model. The proposal has the potential to discover something new and fundamental about dark matter. It will shed a new light on the role of warm and hot gas in structure formation. The long-term objectives will focus on the implementation of the project within the upcoming large facilities, e.g. to measure Dark Energy and the mass of neutrinos. The proposed research will contribute to maintaining Canada as a leading country in observational cosmology.

暗物质的微观物理性质（粒子质量、种类数、相互作用强度）是物理学中最基本的问题之一。目前的范式是冷暗物质（CDM），但原型CDM候选者，弱相互作用大质量粒子，仍然逃避直接检测，使粒子物理学的标准模型陷入困境。CDM模型的强有力的间接测试集中在宇宙中暗物质的宏观质量分布上。特别是，CDM作出了具体的预测暗物质晕晕质量等级范围从地球质量银河超星系团。检测任何与CDM预测的偏差将是理解暗物质性质的重要一步。这个建议是开发新的统计方法，以限制在一个新的质量制度晕的质量层次，到小星系的质量尺度，其中CDM的预测是最干净和最强的。为了实现这一目标，它将使用世界上最大的当前和即将到来的天文调查。这一建议的关键是大型综合巡天望远镜，该望远镜将在两年内投入使用，并将为今后10年积累数据。受训者将在拟议的项目中发挥主导作用，短期目标将集中在解决仪器系统学效应和理论建模的技术问题。一类新的暗物质模型，称为夸克块，是CDM的一个令人兴奋的替代方案，因为它预测了一个与CDM相同的晕层次，但暗物质也与重子丰富的环境中的常规物质强烈相互作用。这项研究计划将调查夸克块金模型的天体物理特征。该提案有可能发现一些关于暗物质的新的和基本的东西。这将为研究温热气体在构造形成中的作用提供新的思路。长期目标将侧重于在即将到来的大型设施中实施该项目，例如测量暗能量和中微子质量。拟议的研究将有助于保持加拿大作为观测宇宙学的领先国家。