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Abstract:
We present a scenario for GeV-scale thermal dark matter that can only be tested with accelerator experiments. Dark matter is composed of dark pions arising from a confining strong interaction in the dark sector.The thermal relic density is obtained through the interplay of up-scatterings of dark pions to heavier dark mesons (the dark counterparts of the kaons and $\eta$), and decays of the unstable dark $\eta$ to Standard Model particles. This mechanism is analogous to a playground slide, where one climbs up first and then slides down with a release of energy. We illustrate the scenario with a minimal model based on the $SU(3)/SO(3)$ coset, where dark matter is stabilized by a $U(1)$ flavor symmetry. The correct relic density is obtained with dark meson mass splittings of $10\%$ to $50\%$ and a dark-$\eta$ lifetime shorter than $10^3\,\mathrm{m}/c$. Direct and indirect dark matter searches are mostly ineffective, as a consequence of the charge conjugation symmetry of the stabilizing $U(1)$. The most striking signals arise at the LHC, from the production of dark showers containing long-lived dark $\eta$’s that decay to visible final states. These signatures crucially depend on the portal interaction connecting the dark sector to the Standard Model. We show that several well-known portals can complete the scenario above the weak scale,and outline the expected signals in each case.
Alternative online link: https://meeting.tencent.com/dm/PNtk4dyG384d
ID: 810937353