A Critique of Drexler Dark Matter

TL;DR

This paper critically evaluates Drexler dark matter, which proposes relativistic protons in galactic halos as dark matter, and finds the model unfeasible based on energetic and stability considerations.

Contribution

It provides a detailed critique of Drexler dark matter by analyzing energetics, particle lifetimes, energy losses, and stability, concluding the model's infeasibility.

Findings

Relativistic protons require excessive energy to produce.

Energy losses via synchrotron and inverse Compton scattering are significant.

Coulomb instability makes the model physically implausible.

Abstract

Drexler dark matter is an alternate approach to dark matter that assumes that highly relativistic protons trapped in the halo of the galaxies could account for the missing mass. We look at various energetics involved in such a scenario such as the energy required to produce such particles and the corresponding lifetimes. Also we look at the energy losses from synchrotron and inverse Compton scattering and their signatures. The Coulomb repulsive instability due to the excess charge around the galaxies is also calculated. The above results lead us to conclude that such a model for DM is unfeasible.