The physics program of the PADME experiment

PADME (Positron Annihilation into Dark Matter Experiment) is a fixed target experiment located at the Beam Test Facility (BTF) at the Laboratori Nazionali di Frascati (LNF) designed to search for a massive dark photon A' in the process e+e- into γA', using a positron beam of energy up to 550 MeV.

Gauge kinetic mixing and dark topological defects

We discuss how the topological defects in the dark sector affect the Standard Model sector when the dark photon has a kinetic mixing with the QED photon. In particular, we consider the dark photon appearing in the successive gauge symmetry breaking, SU(2) → U(1) → ℤ2, where the remaining ℤ2 is the center of SU(2). In this model, the monopole is trapped into the cosmic strings and forms the so-called bead solution. As we will discuss, the dark cosmic string induces the QED magnetic flux inside the dark string through the kinetic mixing. The dark monopole, on the other hand, does not induce the QED magnetic flux in the U(1) symmetric phase, even in the presence of the kinetic mixing. Finally, we show that the dark bead solution induces a spherically symmetric QED magnetic flux through the kinetic mixing. The induced flux looks like the QED magnetic monopole viewed from a distance, although QED satisfies the Bianchi identity everywhere, which we call a pseudo magnetic monopole.

Dark photon bounds in the dark EFT

Dark photons are massive abelian gauge bosons that interact with ordinary photons via a kinetic mixing with the hypercharge field strength tensor. This theory is probed by a variety of different experiments and limits are set on a combination of the dark photon mass and kinetic mixing parameter. These limits can however be strongly modified by the presence of additional heavy degrees of freedom. Using the framework of dark effective field theory, we study how robust are the current experimental bounds when these new states are present. We focus in particular on the possible existence of a dark dipole interaction between the Standard Model leptons and the dark photon. We show that, under certain assumptions, the presence of a dark dipole modifies existing supernovæ bounds for cut-off scales up to $$ \mathcal{O} $$ O (10–100 TeV). On the other hand, terrestrial experiments, such as LSND and E137, can probe cut-off scales up to $$ \mathcal{O} $$ O (3 TeV). For the latter experiment we highlight that the bound may extend down to vanishing kinetic mixing.

A cosmologically consistent millicharged dark matter solution to the EDGES anomaly of possible string theory origin

Analysis of EDGES data shows an absorption signal of the redshifted 21-cm line of atomic hydrogen at z ∼ 17 which is stronger than expected from the standard ΛCDM model. The absorption signal interpreted as brightness temperature T21 of the 21-cm line gives an amplitude of $$ -{500}_{-500}^{+200} $$ − 500 − 500 + 200 mK at 99% C.L. which is a 3.8σ deviation from what the standard ΛCDM cosmology gives. We present a particle physics model for the baryon cooling where a fraction of the dark matter resides in the hidden sector with a U(1) gauge symmetry and a Stueckelberg mechanism operates mixing the visible and the hidden sectors with the hidden sector consisting of dark Dirac fermions and dark photons. The Stueckelberg mass mixing mechanism automatically generates a millicharge for the hidden sector dark fermions providing a theoretical basis for using millicharged dark matter to produce the desired cooling of baryons seen by EDGES by scattering from millicharged dark matter. We compute the relic density of the millicharged dark matter by solving a set of coupled equations for the dark fermion and dark photon yields and for the temperature ratio of the hidden sector and the visible sector heat baths. For the analysis of baryon cooling, we analyze the evolution equations for the temperatures of baryons and millicharged dark matter as a function of the redshift. We exhibit regions of the parameter space which allow consistency with the EDGES data. We note that the Stueckelberg mechanism arises naturally in strings and the existence of a millicharge would point to its string origin.

Gravitational waves and dark photon dark matter from axion rotations

An axion rotating in field space can produce dark photons in the early universe via tachyonic instability. This explosive particle production creates a background of stochastic gravitational waves that may be visible at pulsar timing arrays or other gravitational wave detectors. This scenario provides a novel history for dark photon dark matter. The dark photons may be warm at a level detectable in future 21-cm line surveys. For a consistent cosmology, the radial direction of the complex field containing the axion must be thermalized. We explore a concrete thermalization mechanism in detail and also demonstrate how this setup can be responsible for the generation of the observed baryon asymmetry.

Compton-like dark photon production in electron-nucleus collisions

The Compton-like production of massive dark photons is investigated in ultrarelativistic electron-ion collisions considering the kinetic mixing between the dark photon and the Standard Model photon. The quasi-real photons in the heavy ion are described by the EPA approximation and the model is employed to calculate the integrated cross section and event rates as a function of the dark photon mass, mγ′, and mixing parameter, ε. Predictions are shown for electron-ion colliders (EICs) in the mass range 100 ≤ mγ′ ≤ 500 MeV. Numerical results are provided within the kinematic coverage of the planned machines Electron-ion collider in China (EicC), A Polarized Electron-Ion Collider at Jefferson Lab (JLEIC), Electron Ion Collider/USA (EIC), Large Hadron Electron Collider (LHeC) and Future Circular Collider (FCC-eA). It complements existing search strategies for dark photons in the considered mass interval.

Higgs production in association with a dark-Z at future electron positron colliders

In recent years there have been many proposals for new electron-positron colliders, such as the Circular Electron-Positron Collider, the International Linear Collider, and the Future Circular Collider in electron-positron mode. Much of the motivation for these colliders is precision measurements of the Higgs boson and searches for new electroweak states. Hence, many of these studies are focused on energies above the h Z threshold. However, there are proposals to run these colliders at the lower WW threshold and Z-pole energies. In this paper, we study a new search for Higgs physics accessible at lower energies: e+e− → h Zd, where Zdis a new light gauge boson such as a dark photon or dark-Z. Such searches can be conducted at the WW threshold, i.e. energies below the h Z threshold where exotic Higgs decays can be searched for in earnest. Additionally, due to very good angular and energy resolution at future electron-positron colliders, these searches will be sensitive to Zd masses below 1 GeV, which is lower than the current direct LHC searches. We will show that at √s = 160 GeV with 10 ab−1, a search for e+e− → h Zd is sensitive to h −Z −Zd couplings of δ ∼ 9 × 10−3and cross sections of ∼ 2 − 3 ab for Zd masses below 1 GeV. The results are similar at √s = 240 GeV with 5 ab−1.