Indirect dark matter searches as a probe of degenerate particle spectra

TL;DR

This paper explores how indirect dark matter detection methods, such as antiproton and gamma-ray flux measurements, can effectively probe scenarios where dark matter particles are nearly degenerate in mass with new colored particles below the TeV scale, especially when collider detection is challenging.

Contribution

It demonstrates that indirect searches can impose stronger constraints than collider experiments for certain degenerate dark matter and particle spectra scenarios.

Findings

Antiproton fluxes can set stringent bounds for neutralino-squark degeneracy below 45-80 GeV.

Gamma-ray signals also provide complementary constraints.

Indirect detection methods outperform some collider bounds in specific mass regimes.

Abstract

We consider the possibility that the cosmological dark matter consists of particles very close in mass to new colored particles below the TeV scale. While such a scenario is inherently difficult to directly confirm at colliders, we find that indirect dark matter searches may be a powerful alternative. In particular, we show that in this case dark matter annihilation to quark-quark-gluon final states can give rise to significant antiproton (but also gamma-ray) fluxes, and compare the resulting constraints to bounds from direct searches at LEP, the Tevatron and the LHC. For supersymmetric neutralinos degenerate with squarks, e.g., antiprotons can give rise to more stringent constraints for masses below around 45-80 GeV.