Bounds on Very Weakly Interacting Ultra Light Scalar and Pseudoscalar Dark Matter from Quantum Gravity

TL;DR

This paper explores how quantum gravity constrains ultra light scalar and pseudoscalar dark matter, establishing lower mass bounds and suggesting experimental tests via atomic clocks and quantum sensors.

Contribution

It provides new bounds on the masses of ultra light dark matter candidates considering quantum gravity effects and discusses potential experimental probes.

Findings

Scalar and pseudoscalar masses must be > 3×10^{-3} eV without gauge interactions.

Gauged models allow masses as light as 10^{-22} eV.

Atomic clocks and quantum sensors can test these dark matter models.

Abstract

In this paper we consider very weakly interacting and ultra light scalar and pseudoscalar dark matter candidates. We show that quantum gravity has important implications for such models and that the masses of the singlet scalar and pseudoscalar fields must be heavier than $3\times 10^{-3}$ eV. However, if they are gauged, their masses could be much lighter and as light as $10^{-22}\, {\rm eV}$. The existence of new gauge forces in the dark matter sector can thus be probed by atomic clocks or quantum sensors experiments.