Searching for heavy dark matter with gamma-rays

Abstract

The true nature of the largest matter density component of the Universe, the so-called dark matter (DM), is one of the most elusive problems of Physics. One primary direction for DM searches are for Weakly Interacting Massive Particles (WIMPs). These are particles with masses in the GeV -- TeV range and weak-scale interaction strength. In high density environments of the Universe, DM may self-annihilate and produce a strong gamma-ray signal. Dwarf galaxies, galaxy clusters and the Galactic Center are compelling candidates to harbour such sizeable high energy gamma-ray signal. This project aims to estimate the sensitivity of present gamma-ray detectors, such as Fermi-LAT and H.E.S.S., as well as future observatories, such as the Southern Wide field-of-view Gamma-ray Observatory (SWGO) and the Cherenkov Telescope Array (CTA), to probe theoretical DM particle models that have been overlooked by gamma-rays experiments in the past. Special attention is going to be given to the different distribution models of DM in the different targets, in order to select the best objects, and to different DM particle models, in order to select the most detectable scenarios.