The extent of the stop coannihilation strip

Eur Phys J C Part Fields. 2014;74(7):2947. doi: 10.1140/epjc/s10052-014-2947-7. Epub 2014 Jul 9.

Abstract

Many supersymmetric models such as the constrained minimal supersymmetric extension of the Standard Model (CMSSM) feature a strip in parameter space where the lightest neutralino [Formula: see text] is identified as the lightest supersymmetric particle, the lighter stop squark [Formula: see text] is the next-to-lightest supersymmetric particle (NLSP), and the relic [Formula: see text] cold dark matter density is brought into the range allowed by astrophysics and cosmology by coannihilation with the lighter stop squark [Formula: see text] NLSP. We calculate the stop coannihilation strip in the CMSSM, incorporating Sommerfeld enhancement effects, and we explore the relevant phenomenological constraints and phenomenological signatures. In particular, we show that the [Formula: see text] may weigh several TeV, and its lifetime may be in the nanosecond range, features that are more general than the specific CMSSM scenarios that we study in this paper.