Calculation of Momentum Distribution Function of a Non-thermal Fermionic Dark Matter

TL;DR

This paper investigates the momentum distribution function of non-thermal fermionic dark matter within a $U(1)_{B-L}$ model, emphasizing the importance of solving Boltzmann equations for accurate relic abundance calculations.

Contribution

It introduces a detailed calculation of the dark matter momentum distribution by solving coupled Boltzmann equations, highlighting limitations of the usual comoving number density approach.

Findings

The distribution function differs significantly from equilibrium in non-thermal scenarios.

The usual Boltzmann equation approximation is valid only near equilibrium.

Accurate relic abundance requires solving coupled Boltzmann equations.

Abstract

The most widely studied scenario in dark matter phenomenology is the thermal WIMP scenario. Inspite of numerous efforts to detect WIMP, till now we have no direct evidence for it. A possible explanation for this non-observation of dark matter could be because of its very feeble interaction strength and hence, failing to thermalise with the rest of the cosmic soup. In other words, the dark matter might be of non-thermal origin where the relic density is obtained by the so-called freeze-in mechanism. Furthermore, if this non-thermal dark matter is itself produced substantially from the decay of another non-thermal mother particle, then their distribution functions may differ in both size and shape from the usual equilibrium distribution function. In this work, we have studied such a non-thermal (fermionic) dark matter scenario in the light of a new type of $U(1)_{\rm B-L}$ model. The $U(1)_{\rm B-L}$ model is interesting, since, besides being anomaly free, it can give rise to neutrino mass by Type II see-saw mechanism. Moreover, as we will show, it can accommodate a non-thermal fermionic dark matter as well. Starting from the collision terms, we have calculated the momentum distribution function for the dark matter by solving a coupled system of Boltzmann equations. We then used it to calculate the final relic abundance, as well as other relevant physical quantities. We have also compared our result with that obtained from solving the usual Boltzmann (or rate) equations directly in terms of comoving number density, $Y$. Our findings suggest that the latter approximation is valid only in cases where the system under study is close to equilibrium, and hence should be used with caution.