Candidates for dark matter in the ${SU}(3)_C {SU}(3)_L {U}(1)_N$ models

TL;DR

This paper explores scalar Higgs bosons within 3-3-1 gauge models as potential light dark matter candidates, naturally stable and consistent with astrophysical constraints, offering a novel class of dark matter particles.

Contribution

It introduces scalar Higgs bosons in 3-3-1 models as stable, light dark matter candidates without requiring extra symmetries for stability.

Findings

Scalar candidates have masses of a few MeVs.

Candidates are naturally stable due to their singlet nature.

Compatibility with the 511 keV emission line explanation.

Abstract

It has recently been pointed out that the 511 keV emission line detected by INTEGRAL/SPI from the bulge of our galaxy could be explained by annihilations of light dark matter particles into $e^+ e^-$. We present the possibility that dark matter could be made of scalar candidates, namely, of the Higgs bosons in the models based on ${SU}(3)_C\otimes {SU}(3)_L \otimes {U}(1)_N$ (3-3-1) gauge group. These particles are singlet of the ${SU}(2)_L \otimes {U}(1)_Y$ group, so they do not interact with the ordinary particles, exept the Higgs boson in the standard model. The Spergel-Steinhardt condition for self-interacting dark matter gives a bound on the mass of the candidates to be a few MeVs. Besides the scalar candidates, which exist in both non-SUSY and SUSY 3-3-1 models with right-handed neutrinos, the spin $\fr 1 2$ candidate exists in a variant 3-3-1 version with exotic neutral lepton. In contrast to the singlet models, where an extra symmetry must be imposed to account the stability of the dark matter, here the decay of the candidates is automatically forbidden in all orders of perturbative expansion. This is because of the following feature: these scalars are singlets, i.e., in bottom of the Higgs triplet. Therefore, the standard model fermions and the standard gauge bosons cannot couple with them.