Discovering the Higgsino at CTAO-North within the Decade

TL;DR

This paper proposes that the Cherenkov Telescope Array Observatory's northern site could detect 1.1 TeV higgsino dark matter within a decade, overcoming previous detection challenges through large-zenith-angle observations of the Galactic Center.

Contribution

It demonstrates the potential for CTAO-North to discover higgsino dark matter by optimizing observation strategies, a novel approach in the search for this elusive particle.

Findings

Higgsino detection is feasible within this decade using CTAO-North.

Large-zenith-angle observations enhance the detection prospects.

Detection is possible across various dark matter density profiles.

Abstract

We demonstrate that higgsino dark matter (DM) could be discovered within the next few years using the Cherenkov Telescope Array Observatory's soon-to-be-operational northern site (CTAO-North). A 1.1 TeV thermal higgsino is a highly motivated yet untested model of DM. Despite its strong theoretical motivation in supersymmetry and beyond, the higgsino is notoriously difficult to detect; it lies deep within the neutrino fog of direct detection experiments and could pose a challenge even for a future muon collider. We show that, in contrast, higgsino detection could be possible within this decade with CTAO-North in La Palma, Spain. The Galactic Center is the region where the dominant DM annihilation signature emerges, but it only barely rises above the horizon at the CTAO-North site. However, we project that this challenge can be overcome with large-zenith-angle observations at the northern site, enabling the conclusive detection of a higgsino signal by 2030 for a range of DM density profiles in the inner Galaxy.