Understanding Boson Stars as Potential Dark Matter Candidates

In summary, Boson stars seem to be a good fit for Dark Matter. They are created through the condensation of low-mass particles, and are compatible with the CMB.
  • #1
wolram
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Boson stars seem to be a good fit for Dark Matter.
https://arxiv.org/pdf/1704.05057v1.pdf
Can you help me understand why such a huge particle with such low mass can exist, and how it could be found experimentally.
 
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  • #2
Moderator's note: moving to the Beyond the Standard Model forum as the question is really about a hypothesized particle species not in the SM.
 
  • #3
wolram said:
Boson stars seem to be a good fit for Dark Matter.
https://arxiv.org/pdf/1704.05057v1.pdf
Can you help me understand why such a huge particle with such low mass can exist, and how it could be found experimentally.
Boson star is a solitonic solution of classical nonlinear field equations. As such, it consists of many elementary particles, or more precisely it is a quantum coherent state in which the number of particles is uncertain. The mass is low because there is an attractive force which makes a negative contribution to the total energy.
 
  • #4
So it is a BEC, why is it it can not be seen against CBR?
 
  • #5
wolram said:
So it is a BEC, why is it it can not be seen against CBR?
The "boson stars" are basically just cold dark matter. Each "star" is a galactic halo, each of which is much larger than a visible galaxy. The concept here is that low-mass particles make up the dark matter, and they condense to form Bose-Einstein condensates in galaxy halos. Low-mass dark matter candidates are produced in ways that ensure they have very little kinetic energy, and the leading candidate is the axion.

The way they would be detected would be by detecting the low-mass particles that make them up. This tends to be much more difficult than it is for WIMPs (which have much higher masses), but there have been some attempts (e.g. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Axion_Dark_Matter_Experiment).

Edit: And yes, these candidates are perfectly compatible with the CMB, as they are a potential theoretical explanation for cold dark matter which fits the CMB data quite well.
 
  • #6
Thank you very much for the answers to my questions :biggrin:
 

1. What are Boson stars?

Boson stars are hypothetical objects in space that are composed entirely of bosons, which are a type of elementary particle. They are theorized to exist as a result of the collapse of a massive object, such as a star, under the influence of gravity.

2. How are Boson stars different from regular stars?

Boson stars are fundamentally different from regular stars because they are not composed of atoms, but rather of bosons. This means that they do not emit light and heat like regular stars, and they do not undergo nuclear fusion. Instead, their structure and stability are governed by different physical principles.

3. How do Boson stars form?

Boson stars are thought to form when a massive object, such as a star, collapses under its own gravity. As the core of the object becomes more dense, the particles within it can no longer resist the force of gravity. This causes the particles to collapse into a Bose-Einstein condensate, which is a state of matter where all the particles occupy the same quantum state. This condensate then becomes the core of the Boson star.

4. What makes Boson stars unique?

Boson stars are unique because they are governed by the principles of quantum mechanics, rather than classical mechanics like regular stars. This means that they have different properties and behaviors, such as the ability to withstand extreme gravitational forces and the potential for stable, long-term existence.

5. How do we detect Boson stars?

Currently, there is no direct way to detect Boson stars since they do not emit light or other forms of electromagnetic radiation. However, scientists are exploring different indirect methods, such as observing their effects on the matter and light around them. Additionally, some theories suggest that Boson stars could have a gravitational pull that is different from regular stars, which could potentially be detected by gravitational wave detectors.

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