Blast-frozen Dark Matter and Modulated Density Perturbations

TL;DR

This paper introduces blast-frozen dark matter (BFDM), a new scenario where a first-order phase transition generates dark matter rapidly, leaving distinctive density oscillations that could be detected by future cosmological surveys.

Contribution

The paper proposes a novel mechanism of dark matter formation via a first-order phase transition, resulting in observable density perturbations.

Findings

BFDM produces strong oscillations in dark matter density perturbations.

Next-generation surveys could detect signatures of BFDM.

BFDM links dark matter mass origin to early universe phase transitions.

Abstract

First-order phase transitions (FOPT) are ubiquitous in beyond the Standard Model physics and leave distinctive echoes in the history of early universe. We consider a FOPT serving the well-motivated role of dark matter mass generation and present {\it blast-frozen dark matter} (BFDM), which transitions from radiation to non-relativistic relic in a period much shorter than the corresponding Hubble time. Its cosmological imprint are strong oscillations in the dark matter density perturbations that seed structure formation on large and small scales. For a FOPT occurring not long before the matter-radiation equality, next generation cosmological surveys bear a strong potential to discover BFDM and in turn establish the origin of dark matter mass.