Fenomenologia della Materia Oscura Asimmetrica

A standard candidate for dark matter (DM) is a Weakly Interacting Massive Particle (WIMP). In the standard derivation, the WIMPs are treated either as self-conjugate or distinct particle and antiparticles produced in equal number. By exploring the consequences of a primordial asymmetry in the DM population, the parameter space where the solution of the Boltzmann equations give the correct relic abundance today can be considerably expanded as compared to the symmetric case. It may then be shown how the evolution of DM is further modified and consequently the phenomenology enriched, by allowing for oscillations between the two states ( or "flavors"): particle and antiparticle. An interesting result is found: there can exist two types of interactions with very different dynamics, dubbed "flavor-sensitive" and "flavor-blind". In the final chapter, self-annihilating processes for DM are also introduced and their effects on the evolution of DM discussed.