I Dark Matter Mass: Evidence of Low-Mass?

AI Thread Summary
Gravitational lensing provides insights into the mass of dark matter, indicating that while it rules out certain massive objects like primordial black holes, it does not definitively indicate the mass of fundamental dark matter particles. The total mass of dark matter in the universe is approximately five times that of normal matter, but its particle mass remains uncertain. Discussions highlight that in galaxies, dark matter is more prevalent, whereas baryonic matter dominates on Earth. The absence of low-angle scattering in microlensing suggests that dark matter may be distributed in large, smooth density lumps rather than dense clumps. Overall, the evidence does not conclusively support the idea of low-mass dark matter compared to visible matter.
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Is there any indication, such as through gravitational lensing, that dark matter has a low-mass compared to visible matter?
 
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Are you referring to the dark matter particle mass or the total mass of dark matter?

In the first case no, you have viable dark matter candidates in a very large span of masses. In the second, the total mass of dark matter in the Universe is about five times that of normal matter.
 
Orodruin said:
Are you referring to the dark matter particle mass or the total mass of dark matter?
I meant in the first case. Does gravitational lensing indicate anything, one way or another?
 
Ranku said:
I meant in the first case. Does gravitational lensing indicate anything, one way or another?
Micro-lensing rules out some range of masses for quite massive objects such as primordial black holes. When it comes to fundamental particle candidates, it does not.
 
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Ranku said:
Is there any indication, such as through gravitational lensing, that dark matter has a low-mass compared to visible matter?

I think you need to clarify this question. How much are we talking about? A kilogram of each weighs the same, no?
 
Vanadium 50 said:
I think you need to clarify this question. How much are we talking about? A kilogram of each weighs the same, no?
I mean in terms of comparable volumes of visible and dark matter - although not sure how practically feasible it is to compare between volumes.
 
In the galaxy as a whole, there is more dark matter. In the earth, there is more baryonic matter.
 
If there were dense lumps of dark matter then microlensing of light by such dense lumps of dark matter would show up as low angle scattering.
Absence of such low angle scattering suggests lack of lumps of certain sizes, and that dark matter is divided into big but low and smooth density lumps.
 
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