1 research outputs found
Dark Matter Capture in the First Stars: a Power Source and Limit on Stellar Mass
The annihilation of weakly interacting massive particles can provide an
important heat source for the first (Pop. III) stars, potentially leading to a
new phase of stellar evolution known as a "Dark Star". When dark matter (DM)
capture via scattering off of baryons is included, the luminosity from DM
annihilation may dominate over the luminosity due to fusion, depending on the
DM density and scattering cross-section. The influx of DM due to capture may
thus prolong the lifetime of the Dark Stars. Comparison of DM luminosity with
the Eddington luminosity for the star may constrain the stellar mass of zero
metallicity stars; in this case DM will uniquely determine the mass of the
first stars. Alternatively, if sufficiently massive Pop. III stars are found,
they might be used to bound dark matter properties.Comment: 19 pages, 4 figures, 3 Tables updated captions and graphs, corrected
grammer, and added citations revised for submission to JCA