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Title: Dark antiatoms can explain DAMA

Abstract

We show that the existence of a sub-dominant form of dark matter, made of dark ''antiatoms'' of mass m∼ 1 TeV and size a-dot {sub 0}∼ 3 fm, can explain the results of direct detection experiments, with a positive signal in DAMA/NaI and DAMA/LIBRA and no signal in other experiments. The signal comes from the binding of the dark antiatoms to thallium, a dopant in DAMA, and is not present for the constituent atoms of other experiments. The dark antiatoms are made of two particles oppositely charged under a dark U(1) symmetry and can bind to terrestrial atoms because of a kinetic mixing between the photon and the massless dark photon, such that the dark particles acquire an electric millicharge ∼ ± 5.10{sup −4}e. This millicharge enables them to bind to high-Z atoms via radiative capture, after they thermalize in terrestrial matter through elastic collisions.

Authors:
;  [1]
  1. IFPA, AGO Department, University of Liège, Sart Tilman, 4000 Liège (Belgium)
Publication Date:
OSTI Identifier:
22381993
Resource Type:
Journal Article
Journal Name:
Journal of Cosmology and Astroparticle Physics
Additional Journal Information:
Journal Volume: 2015; Journal Issue: 02; Other Information: Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); Journal ID: ISSN 1475-7516
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English
Subject:
79 ASTROPHYSICS, COSMOLOGY AND ASTRONOMY; ATOMS; CAPTURE; COLLISIONS; DETECTION; MASS; NONLUMINOUS MATTER; PHOTONS; SIGNALS; TEV RANGE 01-10; THALLIUM; U-1 GROUPS

Citation Formats

Wallemacq, Quentin, and Cudell, Jean-René. Dark antiatoms can explain DAMA. United States: N. p., 2015. Web. doi:10.1088/1475-7516/2015/02/011.
Wallemacq, Quentin, & Cudell, Jean-René. Dark antiatoms can explain DAMA. United States. https://doi.org/10.1088/1475-7516/2015/02/011
Wallemacq, Quentin, and Cudell, Jean-René. 2015. "Dark antiatoms can explain DAMA". United States. https://doi.org/10.1088/1475-7516/2015/02/011.
@article{osti_22381993,
title = {Dark antiatoms can explain DAMA},
author = {Wallemacq, Quentin and Cudell, Jean-René},
abstractNote = {We show that the existence of a sub-dominant form of dark matter, made of dark ''antiatoms'' of mass m∼ 1 TeV and size a-dot {sub 0}∼ 3 fm, can explain the results of direct detection experiments, with a positive signal in DAMA/NaI and DAMA/LIBRA and no signal in other experiments. The signal comes from the binding of the dark antiatoms to thallium, a dopant in DAMA, and is not present for the constituent atoms of other experiments. The dark antiatoms are made of two particles oppositely charged under a dark U(1) symmetry and can bind to terrestrial atoms because of a kinetic mixing between the photon and the massless dark photon, such that the dark particles acquire an electric millicharge ∼ ± 5.10{sup −4}e. This millicharge enables them to bind to high-Z atoms via radiative capture, after they thermalize in terrestrial matter through elastic collisions.},
doi = {10.1088/1475-7516/2015/02/011},
url = {https://www.osti.gov/biblio/22381993}, journal = {Journal of Cosmology and Astroparticle Physics},
issn = {1475-7516},
number = 02,
volume = 2015,
place = {United States},
year = {Sun Feb 01 00:00:00 EST 2015},
month = {Sun Feb 01 00:00:00 EST 2015}
}