Thermalization in the presence of a time-dependent dissipation and its impact on dark matter production. (arXiv:2302.06654v1 [hep-ph])

Thermalization in the presence of a time-dependent dissipation and its impact on dark matter production. (arXiv:2302.06654v1 [hep-ph])
<a href="http://arxiv.org/find/hep-ph/1/au:+Chowdhury_D/0/1/0/all/0/1">Debtosh Chowdhury</a>, <a href="http://arxiv.org/find/hep-ph/1/au:+Hait_A/0/1/0/all/0/1">Arpan Hait</a>

A heavy meta-stable field dominates the energy density of the universe after
inflation. The dissipation of this field continuously sources high-energy
particles. In general, the dissipation rate of this meta-stable field can have
a non-trivial time dependence. We study the impact of this time-dependent
dissipation rate on the thermalization of the high-energy decay products of the
meta-stable field. These energetic particles can contribute substantially to
dark matter production in addition to the usual production from the thermal
bath particles during reheating. We investigate the impact of this generalized
dissipation on dark matter production in a model-independent way. We illustrate
the parameter space that explains the observed dark matter relic abundance in
various cosmological scenarios. We observed that dark matter having a mass
larger than the maximum temperature attained by the thermal bath can be
produced from the collision of the high-energy particles which are not yet
thermalized.

A heavy meta-stable field dominates the energy density of the universe after
inflation. The dissipation of this field continuously sources high-energy
particles. In general, the dissipation rate of this meta-stable field can have
a non-trivial time dependence. We study the impact of this time-dependent
dissipation rate on the thermalization of the high-energy decay products of the
meta-stable field. These energetic particles can contribute substantially to
dark matter production in addition to the usual production from the thermal
bath particles during reheating. We investigate the impact of this generalized
dissipation on dark matter production in a model-independent way. We illustrate
the parameter space that explains the observed dark matter relic abundance in
various cosmological scenarios. We observed that dark matter having a mass
larger than the maximum temperature attained by the thermal bath can be
produced from the collision of the high-energy particles which are not yet
thermalized.

http://arxiv.org/icons/sfx.gif