Promotie
Sterile Neutrino Warm Dark Matter in Lyman-α forest
- Datum
- maandag 16 december 2019
- Tijd
- Locatie
-
Academiegebouw
Rapenburg 73
2311 GJ Leiden
Samenvatting
Attempts to phenomenologically explain subatomic physics together with the well-rounded quantum theory of electrodynamics have culminated in the development of the most advanced description of particle physics to date — the Standard Model (SM). Nevertheless, today it is an established fact that the SM has to be extended to explain the so-called Beyond the Standard Model (BSM) phenomena: dark matter, matter-antimatter asymmetry of the Universe and neutrino flavour oscillations.
New particles and interactions have so far evaded discovery in particle-physics experiments. The difficulty of direct detection lies in the huge parameter space of the possible candidates. Hence, data coming from the cosmological and astrophysical observation can provide invaluable directions for laboratory experiments.
In this thesis we explore two methods of constraining new-physics candidates: through their influence on the primordial nucleosynthesis and through observable differences in the matter distribution caused by free-streaming of the dark-matter particles. We concentrate our attention on the well-motivated extension of the SM that aims at explaining all 3 BSM problems at the same time: the Neutrino Minimal Standard Model. In this extension, there are 3 additional heavy neutral leptons (or sterile neutrinos), one of which plays the role of dark matter, while the other two are necessary for induction of matter-antimatter asymmetry and neutrino oscillations. The dark-matter candidate is an example of a Warm Dark Matter particle, the free-streaming of which might be detected in the Lyman-alpha forest spectra of distant quasars. The other two particles have lifetimes that make them relevant to the primordial nucleosynthesis.
Lees de volledige samenvatting (pdf)
Promotor
- Prof.dr. A. Boyarsky
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Persvragen
Maarten Muns, adviseur wetenschapscommunicatie Universiteit Leiden
m.a.muns@bb.leidenuniv.nl
071 527 3282