Constraints on spin-dependent dark matter scattering with long-lived mediators from TeV observations of the Sun with HAWC

作者：Albert A.; Alfaro R.; Alvarez C.; Arceo R.; Arteaga-Velazquez J. C.; Avila Rojas D.; Solares H. A. Ayala; Belmont-Moreno E.; Benzvi S. Y.; Brisbois C.; Caballero-Mora K. S.; Capistran T.; Carraminana A.; Casanova S.; Castillo M.; Cotzomi J.; Coutino de Leon S.; De Leon C.; De la Fuente E.; Dichiara S.; Dingus B. L.; DuVernois M. A.; Diaz-Velez J. C.; Engel K.; Enriquez-Rivera O.; Espinoza C.; Fleischhack H.; Fraija N.; Garcia-Gonzalez J. A.; Garfias F.; Gonzalez M. M.; Goodman J. A.

来源：PHYSICAL REVIEW D, 2018, 98(12): 123012.

DOI：10.1103/PhysRevD.98.123012

We analyze the Sun as a source for the indirect detection of dark matter through a search for gamma rays from the solar disk. Capture of dark matter by elastic interactions with the solar nuclei followed by annihilation to long-lived mediators can produce a detectable gamma-ray flux. We search 3 years of data from the High Altitude Water Cherenkov (HAWC) observatory and find no statistically significant detection of TeV gamma-ray emission from the Sun. Using this, we constrain the spin-dependent elastic scattering cross section of dark matter with protons for dark matter masses above 1 TeV, assuming a sufficiently long-lived mediator. The results complement constraints obtained from Fermi-LAT observations of the Sun and together cover WIMP masses between 4 and 10(6) GeV. In the optimal scenario, the cross-section constraints for mediator decays to gamma rays can be as strong as similar to 10-45 cm(2), which is more than 4 orders of magnitude stronger than current direct-detection experiments for a 1 TeV dark matter mass. The cross-section constraints at higher masses are even better, nearly 7 orders of magnitude better than the current direct-detection constraints for a 100 TeV dark matter mass. This demonstration of sensitivity encourages detailed development of theoretical models in light of these powerful new constraints.