Simulations of multi-field ultralight axion-like dark matter

Abstract

As constraints on ultralight axion-like particles (ALPs) tighten, models with multiple species of ultralight ALP are of increasing interest. We perform simulations of two-ALP models with particles in the currently supported range [arXiv:1307.1705] of plausible masses. The code we modified, UltraDark.jl, not only allows for multiple species of ultralight ALP with different masses, but also different self-interactions and inter-field interactions. This allows us to perform the first three-dimensional simulations of two-field ALPs with self-interactions and inter-field interactions. Our simulations show that having multiple species and interactions introduces different phenomenological effects as compared to a single field, non-interacting scenarios. In particular, we explore the dynamics of solitons. Interacting multi-species ultralight dark matter has different equilibrium density profiles as compared to single-species and/or non-interacting ultralight ALPs. As seen in earlier work [arXiv:2011.09510], attractive interactions tend to contract the density profile while repulsive interactions spread out the density profile. We also explore collisions between solitons comprised of distinct axion species. We observe a lack of interference patterns in such collisions, and that resulting densities depend on the relative masses of the ALPs and their interactions.

16 pages, 11 figures

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Cited by in corpus (11)

• Kinetic relaxation and Bose-star formation in multicomponent dark matter- I
• Cosmological Simulations of Two-Component Wave Dark Matter
• Detecting Axion Dark Matter with Black Hole Polarimetry
• Dynamical friction in self-interacting ultralight dark matter
• Nested solitons in two-field fuzzy dark matter
• Implications of multi-axion dark matter on structure formation
• Core and Halo Properties in Multi-Field Wave Dark Matter
• ALP Anarchy
• Improved Halo Model Calibrations for Mixed Dark Matter Models of Ultralight Axions
• UltraDark.jl: A Julia package for simulation of cosmological scalar fields
• Effects of New Forces on Scalar Dark Matter Solitons