Primordial Black Holes as a dark matter candidate

Green, Anne M.; Kavanagh, Bradley J.

Abstract

The detection of gravitational waves from mergers of tens of Solar mass black hole binaries has led to a surge in interest in Primordial Black Holes (PBHs) as a dark matter candidate. We aim to provide a (relatively) concise overview of the status of PBHs as a dark matter candidate, circa Summer 2020. First we review the formation of PBHs in the early Universe, focusing mainly on PBHs formed via the collapse of large density perturbations generated by inflation. Then we review the various current and future constraints on the present day abundance of PBHs. We conclude with a discussion of the key open questions in this field.

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Oct 14, 2020
• Online Publication Date: Oct 27, 2020
• Publication Date: Feb 10, 2021
• Deposit Date: Oct 23, 2020
• Publicly Available Date: Oct 28, 2021
• Journal: Journal of Physics G: Nuclear and Particle Physics
• Print ISSN: 0954-3899
• Electronic ISSN: 1361-6471
• Publisher: IOP Publishing
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 48
• Issue: 4
• Article Number: 043001
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1088/1361-6471/abc534
• Keywords: Nuclear and High Energy Physics
• Public URL: https://nottingham-repository.worktribe.com/output/4985473
• Publisher URL: https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/1361-6471/abc534