Dark Matter Model Selection and the ATIC/PPB-BETS anomaly

TL;DR

This paper proposes a method to distinguish dark matter models based on their initial electron energy spectra, which remain observable after cosmic ray propagation, aiding interpretation of anomalies like ATIC/PPB-BETS.

Contribution

It introduces a novel approach to identify dark matter models by analyzing the preserved features of initial electron spectra in cosmic-ray data.

Findings

Different initial spectra produce distinct observable energy spectra.

Fermi satellite and CALET can potentially differentiate these spectra.

Method can help interpret dark matter-related cosmic-ray anomalies.

Abstract

We argue that we may be able to sort out dark matter models in which electrons are generated through the annihilation and/or decay of dark matter, by using a fact that the initial energy spectrum is reflected in the cosmic-ray electron flux observed at the Earth even after propagation through the galactic magnetic field. To illustrate our idea we focus on three representative initial spectra: (i)monochromatic (ii)flat and (iii)double-peak ones. We find that those three cases result in significantly different energy spectra, which may be probed by the Fermi satellite in operation or an up-coming cosmic-ray detector such as CALET.