Sterile Neutrino Dark Matter Production in the Neutrino-phillic Two Higgs Doublet Model

TL;DR

This paper explores sterile neutrino dark matter production in a specific two Higgs doublet model, showing Higgs decay can dominate over oscillations and produce warm dark matter in the 4-53 keV mass range.

Contribution

It demonstrates that in the neutrino-phillic two Higgs doublet model, Higgs decay can be the primary production mechanism for sterile neutrino dark matter, bypassing previous constraints.

Findings

Higgs decay can dominate sterile neutrino production in this model.

Sterile neutrino masses of 4-53 keV produce warm dark matter.

The model evades existing constraints on sterile neutrino production.

Abstract

Sterile Neutrinos with a mass in the keV range form a good candidate for dark matter. They are naturally produced from neutrino oscillations via their mixing with the active neutrinos. However the production via non-resonant neutrino oscillations has recently been ruled out. The alternative production via Higgs decay is negligibly small compared to neutrino oscillations. We show that in the neutrino-phillic two Higgs doublet model, the contribution from Higgs decay can dominate over the contribution from neutrino oscillations and evade all constraints. We also study the free-streaming horizon and find that a sterile neutrino mass in the range of 4 to 53 keV leads to warm dark matter.