Dark Stars: Dark Matter in the First Stars leads to a New Phase of Stellar Evolution

摘要

The first phase of stellar evolution in the history of the universe may beDark Stars, powered by dark matter heating rather than by fusion. Weaklyinteracting massive particles, which are their own antiparticles, canannihilate and provide an important heat source for the first stars in the theuniverse. This talk presents the story of these Dark Stars. We make predictionsthat the first stars are very massive ($\sim 800 M_\odot$), cool (6000 K),bright ($\sim 10^6 L_\odot$), long-lived ($\sim 10^6$ years), and probableprecursors to (otherwise unexplained) supermassive black holes. Later, once theinitial DM fuel runs out and fusion sets in, DM annihilation can predominateagain if the scattering cross section is strong enough, so that a Dark Star isborn again.