University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

Novel effects in self-interacting scalar field dark matter solitons

Mirasola, Anthony E.

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https://hdl.handle.net/2142/129963

Description

Title
Novel effects in self-interacting scalar field dark matter solitons
Author(s)
Mirasola, Anthony E.
Issue Date
2025-07-18
Director of Research (if dissertation) or Advisor (if thesis)
  • Kirkpatrick, Kay
  • Prescod-Weinstein, Chanda
Doctoral Committee Chair(s)
Shelton, Jessie
Committee Member(s)
Adshead, Peter
Department of Study
Physics
Discipline
Physics
Degree Granting Institution
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
Degree Name
Ph.D.
Degree Level
Dissertation
Keyword(s)
  • axion
  • dark matter
  • scalar field
  • field theory
  • cosmology
  • particle physics
  • beyond standard model
  • Gross Pitaevskii Equation
  • vortex
Abstract
More than five-sixths of the matter in the universe is dark matter, a substance which cannot be seen and which interacts with other particles almost entirely through gravity. The identity of the dark matter is a longstanding open question. A class of models known as scalar field dark matter (SFDM) are exciting dark matter candidates that share common properties including the formation of solitons in the cores of dark matter halos. Solitons are energetically stable, gravitationally bound states of an extremely large number of SFDM particles that are the solutions to the classical equations of motion for SFDM, and in this work we present results of studies into their properties. We investigate the ability of solitons to emerge from virialized initial conditions in dark matter halos through kinetic relaxation and calculate the timescales associated with this process. We simulate rotating solitons which develop a unique vortex structure and study conditions under which the vortices can remain stable. We also explore models of SFDM which are expanded to include multiple species with both gravitational and non-gravitational inter-species interactions.
Graduation Semester
2025-08
Type of Resource
Thesis
Handle URL
https://hdl.handle.net/2142/129963
Copyright and License Information
Copyright 2025 Anthony E. Mirasola

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