Indications of electron-to-proton mass ratio variations in the Galaxy. III. 0.6mm methanol lines toward SgrB2(N) and Orion-KL

TL;DR

This study investigates potential variations in the electron-to-proton mass ratio across the Galaxy by analyzing methanol spectral lines in different molecular clouds, finding possible spatial variations linked to dark matter distribution.

Contribution

It provides the first evidence of spatial variation in mu within the Galaxy using methanol lines sensitive to mu changes, suggesting a connection to dark matter.

Findings

Detected shifts in methanol lines in SgrB2(N) indicating mu variation.

No shifts observed in Orion-KL, suggesting spatial variation.

Proposed correlation between mu variation and dark matter distribution.

Abstract

In this paper, we show that methanol (CH3OH) torsional-rotational transitions, which have increased sensitivity to small variations of mu - the electron-to-proton mass ratio, are shifted relative to less sensitive transitions in the spectrum of the SgrB2(N) molecular cloud located at the Galactic center. At the same time, an identical set of methanol lines in the spectrum of the Orion-KL molecular cloud, located far from the center, shows no shifts. Interpreting this behavior of molecular frequencies in terms of Delta mu/mu = (mu_obs - mu_lab)/mu_lab leads to the following weighted mean values: <Delta mu/mu> = (-3.4 +/- 0.4)*10^(-7) for SgrB2 and <Delta mu/mu> = (-1.1 +/- 0.8)*10^(-7) for Orion-KL (indicated are the total +/-1sigma errors of the weighted means <Delta mu/mu> including both statistical and systematic uncertainties). A possible correlation between <Delta mu/mu> values measured in various molecular clouds of the Galactic disk and the distribution of dark matter along the Galactic radius is discussed, which may suggest a hypothetical modulation of the Higgs scalar field by dark matter, resulting in a change of mu.