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Blazar-boosted dark matter: Novel signatures via elastic and inelastic scattering

Jin-Wei Wang*

  • *Contact author: jinwei.wang@uestc.edu.cn
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Phys. Rev. D 112, 055004 – Published 2 September, 2025

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/wr32-3g38

Abstract

Blazar-boosted dark matter is a novel mechanism whereby dark matter (DM) particles are accelerated to ultrarelativistic energies through interactions with blazar jets. Focusing on a vector portal DM model, we systematically investigate both elastic and inelastic scattering processes between DM and protons. By analyzing multimessenger data from ground- and space-based observatories, we derive stringent constraints on the DM-proton scattering cross section σχp. Our results improve upon previous limits from the constant cross section and pure elastic scattering scenarios by several orders of magnitude. The distinctive high-energy gamma-ray and neutrino fluxes produced through deep inelastic scattering provide powerful signatures for blazar-boosted dark matter indirect detection, enabling constraints that significantly surpass those from traditional direct detection experiments. Notably, our results suggest that DM could be a new source of high-energy neutrinos from blazars, potentially offering an explanation for IceCube’s observation of TXS 0506+056.

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Physics Subject Headings (PhySH)

Corrections

29 January, 2026

Correction: The omission of a support statement in the Acknowledgments has been fixed.

Article Text

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Outline

Information

Phys. Rev. D 112, 055004– Published 2 September, 2025
  • Received 4 April 2025
  • Revised 17 July 2025
  • Accepted 14 August 2025
  • Corrected 29 January 2026
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