Particle theory

Abstract:

The inferred values of the cosmological baryon and dark matter densities are strikingly similar, but in most theories of the early universe there is no true explanation of this fact; in particular, the baryon asymmetry and thus density depends upon unknown, and {\it a priori} unknown and possibly small, CP-violating phases which are independent of all parameters determining the dark matter density. We consider models of dark matter possessing a particle-antiparticle asymmetry where this asymmetry determines both the baryon asymmetry and strongly effects the dark matter density, thus naturally linking $Ω_{\rm{b}}$ and $Ω_{\rm{dm}}$. We show that sneutrinos can play the role of such dark matter in a previously studied variant of the MSSM in which the light neutrino masses result from higher-dimensional supersymmetry-breaking terms.