Major
Physics
Anticipated Graduation Year
2021
Access Type
Open Access
Abstract
Dark matter is a popular topic right now in physics. There are several prominent theories with respect to dark matter and its formation. One theory involves the WIMPs, or weakly interacting massive particles. The prediction is that these particles decoupled from equilibrium early in the universe after the “freeze-out” and now remain in high abundance. Another theory is the forbidden dark matter framework which describes dark matter as a thermal relic that annihilates into heavier states. A third theory describes a “freeze-in” mechanism; this scenario involves a feebly interacting massive particle, or FIMP, which never attains thermal equilibrium.
Faculty Mentors & Instructors
Walter Tangarife, Ph.D., Loyola University Chicago Department of Physics
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 License.
The Early History of Dark Matter
Dark matter is a popular topic right now in physics. There are several prominent theories with respect to dark matter and its formation. One theory involves the WIMPs, or weakly interacting massive particles. The prediction is that these particles decoupled from equilibrium early in the universe after the “freeze-out” and now remain in high abundance. Another theory is the forbidden dark matter framework which describes dark matter as a thermal relic that annihilates into heavier states. A third theory describes a “freeze-in” mechanism; this scenario involves a feebly interacting massive particle, or FIMP, which never attains thermal equilibrium.