| Speaker: | Christoph Weniger (U Amsterdam) |
|---|---|
| Title: | Indirect searches for WIMP dark matter: Some signal candidates and many |
| Date (JST): | Wed, Nov 04, 2015, 12:30 - 13:30 |
| Place: | Seminar Room A |
| Related File: | 1519.pdf |
| Abstract: | Despite the enormous success of astrophysical and cosmological research over the last decades, about 85% of the matter content in the Universe remains unknown. The currently leading hypothesis for this so-called dark matter are Weakly Interacting Massive Particles (WIMPs), and indirect searches for self-annihilation products of WIMPs in the gamma-ray and cosmic-ray sky are promising experimental probes. I will review existing constraints and signal candidates in the recent literature. Emphasis will be given to a proposed diffuse extended gamma-ray excess that was found in Galactic center observations with the Fermi Large Area Telescope. It has all the properties expected for a dark matter annihilation signal. The arguably most plausible astrophysical explanation is the emission of a large number of millisecond pulsars in the Galactic bulge. I will present further evidence for the millisecond pulsar interpretation, and an outlook for future searches. |
