Antiquark nuggets as dark matter: New constraints and detection prospects

TL;DR

This paper explores the hypothesis that antiquark nuggets could constitute dark matter, analyzing their spectral emissions and constraints from Earth's geothermal energy and radio data, revealing current limits on their abundance and detectability.

Contribution

It introduces new constraints on antiquark nugget dark matter models based on geothermal and radio observations, extending the mass range of interest.

Findings

Antiquark nuggets could account for dark matter within certain mass ranges.

Geothermal energy limits constrain their radiation efficiency in solids.

Radio data restrict their number density below dark matter levels.

Abstract

Current evidence for dark matter in the universe does not exclude heavy composite nuclear-density objects consisting of bound quarks or antiquarks over a significant range of masses. Here we analyze one such proposed scenario, which hypothesizes antiquark nuggets with a range of log10(B) = 24-30 with specific predictions for spectral emissivity via interactions with normal matter. We find that, if these objects make up the majority of the dark matter density in the solar neighborhood, their radiation efficiency in solids is marginally constrained, due to limits from the total geothermal energy budget of the Earth. At allowed radiation efficiencies, the number density of such objects can be constrained to be well below dark matter densities by existing radio data over a mass range currently not restricted by other methods.