Astrophysical Observations of a Dark Matter-Baryon Fifth Force

Abstract

We consider the effects of an attractive, long-range Yukawa interaction between baryons and dark matter (DM), focusing in particular on temperature and pulsar timing observations of neutron stars (NSs). We show that such a fifth force, with strength modestly stronger than gravity at ranges greater than tens of kilometers (corresponding to mediator masses less than $10^{-11}\text{eV}$), can dramatically enhance dark matter kinetic heating, capture, and pulsar timing Doppler shifts relative to gravity plus short range interactions alone. Using the coldest observed NS and pulsar timing array (PTA) data, we derive limits on fifth force strength over a DM mass range spanning light dark matter up to order solar mass composite DM objects. We also consider an indirect limit by combining bullet cluster limits on the DM self-interaction with weak equivalence principle test limits on baryonic self-interactions. We find the combined indirect limits are moderately stronger than kinetic heating and PTA limits, except when considering a DM subcomponent.

40 pages, 6 figures, v2: updated with analysis using another PTA dataset, figures updated, conclusions unchanged v4: updated Fig. 1 to include compact object limit, conclusions unchanged

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• Gravitational wave probes of particle dark matter: a review
• Macroscopic Dark Matter Detection with Gravitational Wave Experiments
• Dark Matter Raining on DUNE and Other Large Volume Detectors
• Dark Kinetic Heating of Exoplanets and Brown Dwarfs
• Exploring Dark Forces with Multimessenger Studies of Extreme Mass Ratio Inspirals
• Constraints on Long-Ranged Interactions Between Dark Matter and the Standard Model
• Seeking the nearest neutron stars using a new local electron density map
• A new probe of dark matter-baryon interactions in compact stellar systems
• Dark, deep, deconfining: Phase transitions in neutron stars as powerful probes of hidden sectors
• Physics beyond the Standard Model with the DSA-2000