http://arxiv.org/abs/2111.01267
We revisit dark-matter production through freeze-in and freeze-out by solving the Boltzmann equations at the level of the phase-space distribution $f(p,t)$. Using the $2\to2$ annihilation and the $1\to2$ decay processes for illustration, we compare the resulting dark-matter relic abundance with that from the number-density approach. In the transition regime between freeze-in and freeze-out, we find the difference can be as large as $\sim$10% for $2\to2$ and $\sim$50% for $1\to2$, or even a factor of $\mathcal{O}(10)$ if the annihilation of dark-matter particles or the decaying mediator is neglected. The freeze-in production in the $2\to2$ and the $1\to2$ processes can also result in non-thermal phase-space distributions, or even multi-modal ones with out-of-equilibrium decay, which can potentially affect structure formation at late times. We also investigate how elastic scatterings can distort such non-thermal distributions.
Y. Du, F. Huang, H. Li, et. al.
Wed, 3 Nov 21
80/106
Comments: 38 pages, 11 figures
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