Secluded Dark Matter in Gauged $B-L$ Model

TL;DR

This paper explores a gauged $B-L$ model with a secluded dark sector, analyzing dark matter production mechanisms, relic abundance dependencies, and potential BSM Higgs discovery via invisible decay searches.

Contribution

It introduces a novel secluded dark sector in the gauged $B-L$ model and classifies dark matter production scenarios, including non-thermal and decay-driven mechanisms.

Findings

Dark matter relic abundance depends on model parameters.

Two main production scenarios identified: non-thermal and decay.

Potential for discovering BSM Higgs through invisible decay channels.

Abstract

We consider the gauged $B-L$ model which is extended with a secluded dark sector, comprising of two dark sector particles. In this framework the lightest $\mathcal{Z}_2$-odd particle is the dark matter candidate, having a feeble interaction with all other SM and BSM states. The next-to-lightest $\mathcal{Z}_2$-odd particle in the dark sector is a super-wimp, with large interaction strength with the SM and BSM states. We analyse all the relevant production processes that contribute to the dark matter relic abundance, and broadly classify them in two different scenarios, a) dark matter is primarily produced via the non-thermal production process, b) dark matter is produced mostly from the late decay of the next-to-lightest $\mathcal{Z}_2$-odd particle. We discuss the dependency of the relic abundance of the dark matter on various model parameters. Furthermore, we also analyse the discovery prospect of the BSM Higgs via invisible Higgs decay searches.