Using the Milky Way satellites to study interactions between cold dark matter and radiation

Boehm, C.; Schewtschenko, J.A.; Wilkinson, R.J.; Baugh, C.M.; Pascoli, S.

doi:10.1093/mnrasl/slu115

Using the Milky Way satellites to study interactions between cold dark matter and radiation

Boehm, C.; Schewtschenko, J.A.; Wilkinson, R.J.; Baugh, C.M.; Pascoli, S.

Authors

C. Boehm

J.A. Schewtschenko

R.J. Wilkinson

Professor Carlton Baugh c.m.baugh@durham.ac.uk
Professor

Professor Silvia Pascoli silvia.pascoli@durham.ac.uk
Visiting Professor

Abstract

The cold dark matter (CDM) model faces persistent challenges on small scales. In particular, the model significantly overestimates the number of satellite galaxies around the Milky Way. Attempts to solve this problem remain controversial and have even led some to abandon CDM altogether. However, current simulations are limited by the assumption that dark matter feels only gravity. Here we show that including interactions between CDM and radiation (photons or neutrinos) leads to a dramatic reduction in the number of satellite galaxies, providing a potential solution to the Milky Way satellite problem and indicating that physics beyond gravity may be essential to make accurate predictions of structure formation on small scales. The methodology introduced here gives constraints on dark matter interactions that are significantly improved over those from the cosmic microwave background.

Citation

Boehm, C., Schewtschenko, J., Wilkinson, R., Baugh, C., & Pascoli, S. (2014). Using the Milky Way satellites to study interactions between cold dark matter and radiation. Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society: Letters, 445(1), L31-L35. https://doi.org/10.1093/mnrasl/slu115

Journal Article Type	Article
Acceptance Date	Jul 17, 2014
Online Publication Date	Sep 1, 2014
Publication Date	Nov 21, 2014
Deposit Date	Apr 30, 2014
Publicly Available Date	May 15, 2014
Journal	Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society: Letters
Electronic ISSN	1745-3933
Publisher	Oxford University Press
Peer Reviewed	Peer Reviewed
Volume	445
Issue	1
Pages	L31-L35
DOI	https://doi.org/10.1093/mnrasl/slu115
Keywords	Galaxies: abundances, Galaxies: dwarf, Dark matter, Large-scale structure of Universe.

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This article has been accepted for publication in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society Letters © 2014 The Author Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Royal Astronomical Society. All rights reserved.