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Abstract

We investigate the phenomenology of a simplified model with a Majorana
fermion as dark matter candidate which interacts with Standard Model quarks via
a colour-charged coannihilation partner. Recently it has been realized that
non-perturbative dynamics, including the Sommerfeld effect, bound state
formation/dissociation and thermal corrections, play an important role in
coannihilations with coloured mediators. This calls for a careful analysis of
thermal freeze-out and a new look at the experimental signatures expected for a
thermal relic. We employ a state of the art calculation of the relic density
which makes use of a non-relativistic effective theory framework and calculate
the effective annihilation rates by solving a plasma-modified Schrodinger
equation. We determine the cosmologically preferred parameter space and
confront it with current experimental limits and future prospects for dark
matter detection.