Neutralino Dark Matter in BMSSM Effective Theory

TL;DR

This paper investigates how extending the MSSM to the BMSSM framework affects neutralino dark matter properties, revealing new viable parameter regions and altered relic density predictions due to effective field theory corrections.

Contribution

It introduces the impact of BMSSM effective operators on neutralino dark matter, highlighting modifications in parameter space and relic density calculations compared to the MSSM.

Findings

New parameter regions for Higgsino LSPs in BMSSM

Altered relic density predictions due to effective operators

Interplay between dark matter bounds and collider constraints

Abstract

We study thermal neutralino dark matter in an effective field theory extension of the MSSM, called "Beyond the MSSM" (BMSSM) in Dine, Seiberg and Thomas (2007). In this class of effective field theories, the field content of the MSSM is unchanged, but the little hierarchy problem is alleviated by allowing small corrections to the Higgs/higgsino part of the Lagrangian. We perform parameter scans and compute the dark matter relic density. The light Higgsino LSP scenario is modified the most; we find new regions of parameter space compared to the standard MSSM. This involves interesting interplay between the WMAP dark matter bounds and the LEP chargino bound. We also find some changes for gaugino LSPs, partly due to annihilation through a Higgs resonance, and partly due to coannihilation with light stops in models that are ruled in by the new effective terms.