Dynamical evidence of a dark solitonic core of 109M⊙ in the milky way

Publication date: Available online 13 February 2020Source: Physics of the Dark UniverseAuthor(s): Ivan De Martino, Tom Broadhurst, S.-H. Henry Tye, Tzihong Chiueh, Hsi-Yu SchiveAbstractA wavelike solution for the non-relativistic universal dark matter (wave-DM) is rapidly gaining interest, following pioneering simulations of cosmic structure as an interference pattern of coherently oscillating bosons. A prominent solitonic standing wave is predicted at the center of every galaxy, representing the ground state solution of the coupled Schrödinger-Poisson equations, and it has been identified with the wide, kpc scale dark cores of common dwarf-spheroidal galaxies. A denser soliton is predicted for Milky Way sized galaxies where momentum is higher, so the de Broglie scale of the soliton is smaller, ≃100 pc, of mass ≃109M⊙. Here we show the central motion of bulge stars in the Milky Way implies the presence of such a dark core, where the velocity dispersion rises inversely with radius to a maximum of ≃130 km/s, corresponding to an excess central mass of ≃1.5×109M⊙ within ≃100 pc, favouring a boson mass of ≃10−22eV. This quantitative agreement with such a unique and distinctive prediction is therefore strong evidence for a light bosonic solution to the long standing Dark Matter puzzle.

Source: Physics of the Dark Universe - February 14, 2020 Category: Physics Source Type: research