title: New constraints on dark matter effective theories from standard model loops.
abstract: We consider an effective field theory for a gauge singlet Dirac dark matter particle interacting with the standard model fields via effective operators suppressed by the scale Λ ≳ 1 TeV. We perform a systematic analysis of the leading loop contributions to spin-independent Dirac dark matter-nucleon scattering using renormalization group evolution between Λ and the low-energy scale probed by direct detection experiments. We find that electroweak interactions induce operator mixings such that operators that are naively velocity suppressed and spin dependent can actually contribute to spin-independent scattering. This allows us to put novel constraints on Wilson coefficients that were so far poorly bounded by direct detection. Constraints from current searches are already significantly stronger than LHC bounds, and will improve in the near future. Interestingly, the loop contribution we find is isospin violating even if the underlying theory is isospin conserving.
authors.affiliation: CERN Theory Division, CH-1211 Geneva 23, Switzerland and Albert Einstein Center for Fundamental Physics, Institute for Theoretical Physics, University of Bern, CH-3012 Bern, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Andreas
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Crivellin
authors.affiliation: Department of Physics, University of California, Berkeley, California 94720, USA and Theoretical Physics Group, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, California 94720, USA.
authors.forename: Francesco
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: D'Eramo
authors.affiliation: Albert Einstein Center for Fundamental Physics, Institute for Theoretical Physics, University of Bern, CH-3012 Bern, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Massimiliano
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Procura