We consider the implications of a shared production mechanism between the baryon asymmetry of the universe and the relic abundance of dark matter, that does not result in matching asymmetries. We present a simple model within a two sector leptogenesis framework, in which right handed sterile neutrinos decay out of equilibrium to both the Standard Model and the dark sector, generating an asymmetry in one and populating the other. This realization naturally accommodates light dark matter in the keV mass scale and above. Interactions in the dark sector may or may not cause the sector to thermalize, leading to interesting phenomenological implications, including hot, warm or cold thermal relic dark matter, while evading cosmological constraints. Under minimal assumptions the model provides a novel non-thermal production mechanism for sterile neutrino dark matter and predicts indirect detection signatures which may address the unexplained 3.5 keV line observed in various galaxy clusters.
Detection of a gravitational-wave signal of non-astrophysical origin would be a landmark discovery, potentially providing a significant clue to some of our most basic, big-picture scientific questions about the Universe. In this white paper, we survey the leading early-Universe mechanisms that may produce a detectable signal—including inflation, phase transitions, topological defects, as well as primordial black holes—and highlight the connections to fundamental physics. We review the complementarity with collider searches for new physics, and multimessenger probes of the large-scale structure of the Universe.
Supercooled first order phase transitions are typical of theories where conformal symmetry is predominantly spontaneously broken. In these theories the fate of the flat scalar direction is highly sensitive to the size and the scaling dimension of the explicit breaking deformations. For a given deformation, the coupling must lie in a particular region to realize a supercooled first order phase transition. We identify the supercooling window in weakly coupled theories and derive a fully analytical understanding of its boundaries. Mapping these boundaries allows us to identify the deformations enlarging the supercooling window and to characterize their dynamics analytically. For completeness we also discuss strongly coupled conformal field theories with an holographic dual, where the complete characterization of the supercooling window is challenged by calculability issues.
We initiate the study of gravitational wave (GW) signals from first-order phase transitions in supersymmetry-breaking hidden sectors. Such phase transitions often occur along a pseudo-flat direction universally related to supersymmetry (SUSY) breaking in hidden sectors that spontaneously break R-symmetry. The potential along this pseudo-flat direction imbues the phase transition with a number of novel properties, including a nucleation temperature well below the scale of heavy states (such that the temperature dependence is captured by the low-temperature expansion) and significant friction induced by the same heavy states as they pass through bubble walls. In low-energy SUSY-breaking hidden sectors, the frequency of the GW signal arising from such a phase transition is guaranteed to lie within the reach of future interferometers given existing cosmological constraints on the gravitino abundance. Once a mediation scheme is specified, the frequency of the GW peak correlates with the superpartner spectrum. Current bounds on supersymmetry are compatible with GW signals at future interferometers, while the observation of a GW signal from a SUSY-breaking hidden sector would imply superpartners within reach of future colliders.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.