Contributor info: Dr Martin Bauer

Martin Bauer, Patrick Foldenauer, Peter Reimitz, Tilman Plehn

SciPost Phys. 10, 030 (2021) · published 5 February 2021 | Toggle abstract · pdf

We systematically study models with light scalar and pseudoscalar dark matter candidates and their potential signals at the LHC. First, we derive cosmological bounds on models with the Standard Model Higgs mediator and with a new weak-scale mediator. Next, we study two processes inspired by the indirect and direct detection process topologies, now happening inside the LHC detectors. We find that LHC can observe very light dark matter over a huge mass range if it is produced in mediator decays and then scatters with the detector material to generate jets in the nuclear recoil.

Martin Bauer, Sascha Diefenbacher, Tilman Plehn, Michael Russell, Daniel A. Camargo

SciPost Phys. 5, 036 (2018) · published 19 October 2018 | Toggle abstract · pdf

A consistent model for vector mediators to dark matter needs to be anomaly-free and include a scalar mode from mass generation. For the leading U(1) extensions we review the structure and constraints, including kinetic mixing at loop level. The thermal relic density suggests that the vector and scalar masses are similar. For the LHC we combine a $Z'$ shape analysis with mono-jets. For the latter, we find that a shape analysis offers significant improvement over existing cut-and-count approaches. Direct detection limits strongly constrain the kinetic mixing angle and we propose a $\ell^+\ell^- E_T$ search strategy based on the scalar mediator.