Observational constraints on dark matter–dark energy scattering cross section

Abstract

In this letter, we report precise and robust observational constraints on the dark matter–dark energy scattering cross section, using the latest data from cosmic microwave background (CMB) Planck temperature and polarization, baryon acoustic oscillations (BAO) measurements and weak gravitational lensing data from Canada–France–Hawaii Telescope Lensing Survey (CFHTLenS). The scattering scenario consists of a pure momentum exchange between the dark components, and we find σd<10-29cm2(mdmc2/Gev) at 95% CL from the joint analysis (CMB + BAO + CFHTLenS), where mdm is a typical dark matter particle mass. We notice that the scattering among the dark components may influence the growth of large scale structure in the Universe, leaving the background cosmology unaltered.