LHC Bounds on UV-Complete Models of Dark Matter

TL;DR

This paper examines collider search bounds on UV-complete dark matter models, focusing on mediator accessibility and deriving constraints applicable to direct detection interpretations, highlighting the robustness of effective operator bounds for heavy mediators.

Contribution

It provides a comprehensive analysis of collider bounds on all tree-level UV completions of fermionic dark matter interactions with quarks, connecting collider and direct detection constraints.

Findings

Effective operator bounds are robust for heavy mediators.

Collider bounds constrain both elastic and inelastic dark matter models.

Resonant production enhances the sensitivity of collider searches.

Abstract

We analyze the sensitivity of searches for dark matter in the jets and missing energy channel in the case where the particle mediating interactions between hadronic matter and DM is collider accessible. We consider all tree level UV completions of interactions between fermion DM and quarks which contribute to direct detection, and derive bounds which apply to elastic or inelastic scattering dark matter explanations of direct detection signals. We find that studies based on effective operators give robust bounds when the mediator is heavy enough to resonantly produce the final state in question.