New Messengers and New Physics: Multimessenger Paths to Indirect Dark Matter Detection

Objective

Dark matter may be composed of either particle candidates such as Weakly Interacting Massive Particles (WIMPs) or macroscopic candidates like primordial black holes (PBHs). Intriguingly, theory suggests that the two cannot coexist, since even small PBH fractions would seed dense WIMP halos that produce annihilation signals exceeding observations. In this fellowship, I propose nuDarkPaths, a three-part program to establish the first multimessenger framework capable of decisively testing WIMP and PBH scenarios. I will first build the first joint gamma-ray + neutrino likelihood framework for indirect WIMP searches, validated on dwarf spheroidal galaxies, to surpass current single-messenger sensitivity. I will then develop a unified PBH→GW pipeline to connect realistic PBH populations with limits from resolved mergers and the stochastic gravitational-wave (GW) background. Finally, I will integrate these approaches to deliver the first quantitative coexistence map of WIMPs and PBHs, linking the annihilation cross-section and PBH fraction in a single observational framework. This project is timely given the wealth of new gamma-ray, neutrino, and GW data and ambitious in replacing isolated constraints with a coherent, multimessenger analysis. By providing open, reusable pipelines, nuDarkPaths will set world-leading limits—or enable discovery—on dark matter’s fundamental nature, while positioning me as a competitive future research leader in multimessenger astrophysics.