Detecting Dark Matter annihilation lines with Fermi
Dark matter constitutes one of the most intriguing but so far unresolved issues in physics today. In many extensions of the Standard Model the existence of a stable Weakly Interacting Massive Particle (WIMP) is predicted. The WIMP is an excellent dark matter particle candidate and one of the most interesting scenarios include an annihilation of two WIMPs into two gamma-rays. If the WIMPs are assumed to be non-relativistic, the resulting photons will both have an energy equal to the mass of the WIMP and manifest themselves as a monochromatic spectral line in the energy spectrum. This type of signal would represent a 'smoking gun' for dark matter, since no other known astrophysical process should be able to produce it. In these proceedings we give an overview of the different approaches to a search for dark matter lines that the Fermi-LAT collaboration is pursuing and the various challenges involved.
- Research Organization:
- SLAC National Accelerator Lab., Menlo Park, CA (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE
- DOE Contract Number:
- AC02-76SF00515
- OSTI ID:
- 952978
- Report Number(s):
- SLAC-PUB-13624; arXiv:0812.2853; TRN: US0902631
- Journal Information:
- PoS idm2008:111,2008, Conference: Presented at IDM 2008: 7th International Workshop on the Identification of Dark Matter 2008, Stockholm, Sweden, 18-22 Aug 2008
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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