11–13 May 2026
University of Pittsburgh
US/Eastern timezone

Questions on Fuzzy Dark Matter

11 May 2026, 18:00
15m
David Lawrence Hall 209, University of Pittsburgh

David Lawrence Hall 209, University of Pittsburgh

Speaker

Sunhaeng Hur (Virginia Tech)

Description

While Cold Dark Matter (CDM) simulations predict divergent central density profiles (cusps), observations of dwarf galaxies reveal flat, constant-density cores. Fuzzy Dark Matter (FDM), composed of ultralight bosons, offers a potential solution through quantum pressure that opposes gravitational collapse, forming a stable cored ground state known as a soliton. However, standard FDM soliton models exhibit a scaling problem where heavier cores are predicted to be smaller, contrary to observational data suggesting heavier cores are larger. To resolve this fundamental discrepancy, this research explores the thermal evolution of FDM halos by treating them as ensembles of excited states within a grand canonical framework. Numerical results demonstrate a sharp phase transition from deep solitonic structures to shallower potentials at critical temperatures. Future challenges include defining appropriate ultraviolet cutoffs to regularize the partition function and deriving exact analytical formulas for the chemical potential and phase transition temperatures.

Author

Sunhaeng Hur (Virginia Tech)

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