New Study Challenges Fuzzy Dark Matter with Stronger Mass Constraint

Over 80 years, darkish matter has been an ideal thriller for the researchers. Elusive of direct commentary, it has made its existence recognized solely by the gravitational impacts it makes on cosmic structures. Despite the fact that there’s a variety of oblique proof of its existence, the actual nature of darkish matter remains to be unknown. An necessary attribute of its particle is mass. Whereas previous research have constrained the mass of fermionic darkish matter utilizing quantum rules like Pauli’s exclusion precept, bosonic darkish matter remained much less constrained. In a current research, scientists have estimated a brand new decrease sure on the mass of ultra-lightweight bosonic dark matter particles.

Concerning the research

Based on the research published in Bodily Evaluate Letters, the mass of ultralight bosonic darkish matter have to be greater than 2 × 10-21 electron volts (eV), 100 instances greater than earlier estimates utilizing Heisenberg’s uncertainty precept.

The workforce of researchers, led by the primary creator of the research, Tim Zimmermann, a Ph.D. candidate on the Institute of Theoretical Astrophysics, College of Oslo, centered their methodology on the information of Leo II, the Milky Approach’s satellite tv for pc galaxy. It’s a dwarf galaxy 1,000 instances smaller than the Milky Way. By analyzing the inner motions of stars inside Leo II—closely influenced by darkish matter—the workforce derived 5,000 doable darkish matter density profiles utilizing a instrument referred to as GRAVSPHERE.

They in contrast these with profiles generated by quantum wave features of assorted darkish matter particle lots. If the particle is simply too mild, quantum fuzziness spreads it too thinly, stopping it from forming the noticed buildings. The research concluded that the darkish matter particle will need to have a mass higher than 2.2 × 10⁻²¹ electron volts (eV)—over 100 instances greater than earlier decrease estimates.

Affect on darkish matter research

The findings have important implications for in style ultralight darkish matter fashions, significantly fuzzy darkish matter, which generally proposes particles with lots round 10-22 ev.

Wanting forward, the workforce plans to increase their methodology to combined darkish matter eventualities, the place darkish matter consists of particles with totally different lots.