Scalar dark matter and fermion coannihilations in the radiative seesaw model

TL;DR

This paper explores how scalar dark matter coannihilations with right-handed neutrinos in an extended Standard Model influence relic density and detection prospects, revealing new viable parameter regions with high indirect detection signals.

Contribution

It provides a detailed analysis of coannihilation effects in a radiative seesaw model, expanding the viable dark matter parameter space and highlighting implications for indirect detection.

Findings

Coannihilations increase dark matter relic density.

Viable dark matter masses below 500 GeV are identified.

High indirect detection rates with sigma v around 10^{-24} cm^3/s.

Abstract

By extending the Standard Model with three right-handed neutrinos (N_i) and a second Higgs doublet (H_2), odd under a Z_2 symmetry, it is possible to explain non-zero neutrino masses and to account for the dark matter. We consider the case where the dark matter is a scalar and study its coannihilations with the right-handed neutrinos. These coannihilations tend to increase, rather than reduce, the dark matter density and they modify in a significant way the viable parameter space of the model. In particular, they allow to satisfy the relic density constraint for dark matter masses well below 500 GeV. The dependence of the relic density on the relevant parameters of the model, such as the dark matter mass, the mass splitting, and the number of coannihilating fermions, is analyzed in detail. We also investigate, via a scan over the parameter space, the new viable regions that are obtained when coannihilations are taken into account. Notably, they feature large indirect detection rates, with sigmav reaching values of order 10^{-24} cm^3/s. Finally, we emphasize that coannihilation effects analogous to those discussed here can be used to reconcile a thermal freeze-out with a large sigmav also in other models of dark matter.