Dark Matter An Introduction

Dark Matter: An Introduction tackles the rather recent but fast-growing subject of astroparticle physics, encompassing three main areas of fundamental physics: cosmology, particle physics, and astrophysics. Accordingly, the book discusses symmetries, conservation laws, relativity, and cosmological parameters and measurements, as well as the astrophysical behaviors of galaxies and galaxy clusters that indicate the presence of dark matter and the possible nature of dark matter distribution. This succinct yet comprehensive volume:

• Addresses all aspects essential to the study of dark matter
• Explores particle candidates for cold dark matter beyond the theory of the standard model, providing examples of basic extensions and introducing theories such as supersymmetry and extra dimensions
• Explains?in simple text and mathematical formulations?calculation of the freeze-out temperature of a dark matter species and its relic density
• Provides theoretical background for dark matter scattering off a target, event rate calculation, and dark matter annihilation essential to study direct and indirect detection of dark matter

Complete with a detailed review of the latest dark matter experiments and techniques, Dark Matter: An Introduction is an ideal text for beginning researchers in the field as well as for general readers with an inquisitive mind, as the important topic of astroparticle physics is treated both pedagogically and with deeper insight.

Introduction. Brief Discussion on Relativity. Particle Physics Basics. Basics of Cosmology. Evidence of Dark Matter. Galactic Halo of Dark Matter. Types of Dark Matter. Candidates of Dark Matter. Relic Density. Direct Detection of Dark Matter. Dark Matter Hunt. Indirect Dark Matter Search. Other Dark Matter Candidates.

Debasish Majumdar is a professor in the Astroparticle Physics and Cosmology Division at the Saha Institute of Nuclear Physics, Kolkata, India. His research interests include dark matter, dark energy, neutrino physics, and a statistical approach to nuclear-level and strength densities. He did his Ph.D work at the Physical Research Laboratory, Ahmedabad, India. A widely published and respected dark matter research pioneer, he has visited such prestigious institutions as CERN, Geneva, Switzerland; Fermilab, Chicago, Illinois, USA; The Abdus Salam International Centre for Theoretical Physics, Trieste, Italy; and University of Oxford, UK as a researcher and a speaker.