Constraints on Dark Matter Self-interactions from Weak Lensing of Galaxies from the Dark Energy Survey around Clusters from the Atacama Cosmology Telescope Survey

Self-interactions of dark matter particles impact the distribution of dark matter in halos. The exact nature of the self-interactions can lead to either expansion or collapse of the core within the halo lifetime, leaving distinctive signatures in the dark matter distributions not only at the halo ce...

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Main Authors: Susmita Adhikari, Arka Banerjee, Bhuvnesh Jain, Tae-hyeon Shin, Yi-Ming Zhong
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: IOP Publishing 2025-01-01
Series:The Astrophysical Journal
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Online Access:https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/adb0c4
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author Susmita Adhikari
Arka Banerjee
Bhuvnesh Jain
Tae-hyeon Shin
Yi-Ming Zhong
author_facet Susmita Adhikari
Arka Banerjee
Bhuvnesh Jain
Tae-hyeon Shin
Yi-Ming Zhong
author_sort Susmita Adhikari
collection DOAJ
description Self-interactions of dark matter particles impact the distribution of dark matter in halos. The exact nature of the self-interactions can lead to either expansion or collapse of the core within the halo lifetime, leaving distinctive signatures in the dark matter distributions not only at the halo center but throughout the virial region. Optical galaxy surveys, which precisely measure the weak lensing of background galaxies by massive foreground clusters, allow us to directly measure the matter distribution within clusters and probe subtle effects of self-interacting dark matter (SIDM) throughout the halo’s full radial range. We compare the weak-lensing measurements reported by T. Shin et al., which use lens clusters identified by the Atacama Cosmology Telescope Survey and source galaxies from the Dark Energy Survey, with predictions from SIDM models having either elastic or dissipative self-interactions. To model the weak-lensing observables, we use cosmological N -body simulations for elastic self-interactions and semianalytical fluid simulations for dissipative self-interactions. We find that current weak-lensing measurements already constrain the isotropic and elastic SIDM to a cross section per mass of σ / m  < 1 cm ^2 g ^−1 at a 95% confidence level for clusters with mean M _200m  = 3 × 10 ^14 M _⊙ h ^–1 . The same measurements also impose novel constraints on the energy loss per unit mass for dissipative SIDM. Upcoming surveys are anticipated to enhance the signal-to-noise ratio of weak-lensing observables significantly, making them effective tools for investigating the nature of dark matter, including self-interactions, through weak lensing.
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spelling doaj-art-32969df2e65c494fa938f2543dcb41662025-08-20T01:55:27ZengIOP PublishingThe Astrophysical Journal1538-43572025-01-0198315010.3847/1538-4357/adb0c4Constraints on Dark Matter Self-interactions from Weak Lensing of Galaxies from the Dark Energy Survey around Clusters from the Atacama Cosmology Telescope SurveySusmita Adhikari0https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0298-4432Arka Banerjee1https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5209-1173Bhuvnesh Jain2Tae-hyeon Shin3Yi-Ming Zhong4Indian Institute of Science Education and Research , Pune, Maharashtra, 411008, India ; susmita@iiserpune.ac.inIndian Institute of Science Education and Research , Pune, Maharashtra, 411008, India ; susmita@iiserpune.ac.inCenter for Particle Cosmology, Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Pennsylvania , Philadelphia, PA 19104, USADepartment of Physics and Astronomy, Stony Brook University , Stony Brook, NY 11794, USADepartment of Physics, City University of Hong Kong , Kowloon, Hong Kong SAR, People’s Republic of China ; yimzhong@cityu.edu.hk; Kavli Institute for Cosmological Physics, University of Chicago , Chicago, IL 60637, USASelf-interactions of dark matter particles impact the distribution of dark matter in halos. The exact nature of the self-interactions can lead to either expansion or collapse of the core within the halo lifetime, leaving distinctive signatures in the dark matter distributions not only at the halo center but throughout the virial region. Optical galaxy surveys, which precisely measure the weak lensing of background galaxies by massive foreground clusters, allow us to directly measure the matter distribution within clusters and probe subtle effects of self-interacting dark matter (SIDM) throughout the halo’s full radial range. We compare the weak-lensing measurements reported by T. Shin et al., which use lens clusters identified by the Atacama Cosmology Telescope Survey and source galaxies from the Dark Energy Survey, with predictions from SIDM models having either elastic or dissipative self-interactions. To model the weak-lensing observables, we use cosmological N -body simulations for elastic self-interactions and semianalytical fluid simulations for dissipative self-interactions. We find that current weak-lensing measurements already constrain the isotropic and elastic SIDM to a cross section per mass of σ / m  < 1 cm ^2 g ^−1 at a 95% confidence level for clusters with mean M _200m  = 3 × 10 ^14 M _⊙ h ^–1 . The same measurements also impose novel constraints on the energy loss per unit mass for dissipative SIDM. Upcoming surveys are anticipated to enhance the signal-to-noise ratio of weak-lensing observables significantly, making them effective tools for investigating the nature of dark matter, including self-interactions, through weak lensing.https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/adb0c4Weak gravitational lensingGalaxy dark matter halosDark matterParticle physics
spellingShingle Susmita Adhikari
Arka Banerjee
Bhuvnesh Jain
Tae-hyeon Shin
Yi-Ming Zhong
Constraints on Dark Matter Self-interactions from Weak Lensing of Galaxies from the Dark Energy Survey around Clusters from the Atacama Cosmology Telescope Survey
The Astrophysical Journal
Weak gravitational lensing
Galaxy dark matter halos
Dark matter
Particle physics
title Constraints on Dark Matter Self-interactions from Weak Lensing of Galaxies from the Dark Energy Survey around Clusters from the Atacama Cosmology Telescope Survey
title_full Constraints on Dark Matter Self-interactions from Weak Lensing of Galaxies from the Dark Energy Survey around Clusters from the Atacama Cosmology Telescope Survey
title_fullStr Constraints on Dark Matter Self-interactions from Weak Lensing of Galaxies from the Dark Energy Survey around Clusters from the Atacama Cosmology Telescope Survey
title_full_unstemmed Constraints on Dark Matter Self-interactions from Weak Lensing of Galaxies from the Dark Energy Survey around Clusters from the Atacama Cosmology Telescope Survey
title_short Constraints on Dark Matter Self-interactions from Weak Lensing of Galaxies from the Dark Energy Survey around Clusters from the Atacama Cosmology Telescope Survey
title_sort constraints on dark matter self interactions from weak lensing of galaxies from the dark energy survey around clusters from the atacama cosmology telescope survey
topic Weak gravitational lensing
Galaxy dark matter halos
Dark matter
Particle physics
url https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/adb0c4
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