Using the Milky Way satellites to study interactions between cold dark matter and radiation

Boehm, C.; Schewtschenko, J.A.; Wilkinson, R.J.; Baugh, C.M.; Pascoli, S.

Abstract

The cold dark matter (CDM) model faces persistent challenges on small scales. In particular, the model significantly overestimates the number of satellite galaxies around the Milky Way. Attempts to solve this problem remain controversial and have even led some to abandon CDM altogether. However, current simulations are limited by the assumption that dark matter feels only gravity. Here we show that including interactions between CDM and radiation (photons or neutrinos) leads to a dramatic reduction in the number of satellite galaxies, providing a potential solution to the Milky Way satellite problem and indicating that physics beyond gravity may be essential to make accurate predictions of structure formation on small scales. The methodology introduced here gives constraints on dark matter interactions that are significantly improved over those from the cosmic microwave background.

Citation

Boehm, C., Schewtschenko, J., Wilkinson, R., Baugh, C., & Pascoli, S. (2014). Using the Milky Way satellites to study interactions between cold dark matter and radiation. Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society: Letters, 445(1), L31-L35. https://doi.org/10.1093/mnrasl/slu115

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Jul 17, 2014
• Online Publication Date: Sep 1, 2014
• Publication Date: Nov 21, 2014
• Deposit Date: Apr 30, 2014
• Publicly Available Date: May 15, 2014
• Journal: Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society: Letters
• Electronic ISSN: 1745-3933
• Publisher: Oxford University Press
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 445
• Issue: 1
• Pages: L31-L35
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/mnrasl/slu115
• Keywords: Galaxies: abundances, Galaxies: dwarf, Dark matter, Large-scale structure of Universe.
• Public URL: https://durham-repository.worktribe.com/output/1456007