Dark Matter and Baryogenesis via Conversion-Driven Freeze-Out

Corfu Summer Institute School and Workshops on Elementary Particle Physics and Gravity (CORFU), pp. 220

Abstract

We explore dark matter genesis beyond the WIMP paradigm, focusing on conversion-driven freeze-out – a mechanism that provides thermalization despite very weak dark matter couplings. While this scenario eludes conventional WIMP searches, it predicts distinctive signatures of long-lived particles at colliders, making it a key target for upcoming collider probes. We review realizations of this mechanism and demonstrate how conversion-driven freeze-out can additionally generate the baryon asymmetry, offering a unified explanation for the origins of both dark and visible matter.

Authors 1

1. Jan Heisig corresponding Aachen Institute for Theoretical Particle Physics and Cosmology

   RWTH Aachen University

   Affiliation as printed

   Institute for Theoretical Particle Physics and Cosmology , RWTH Aachen University , D-52056 Aachen , Germany