Model-independent Constraints on Ultralight Dark Matter from the SPARC Data

Abstract

Abstract Ultralight dark matter (ULDM) is currently one of the most popular classes of cosmological dark matter. The most important advantage is that ULDM with mass m ∼ 10−22 eV can account for the small-scale problems encountered in the standard cold dark matter model like the core–cusp problem, missing satellite problem, and the too-big-to-fail problem in galaxies. In this paper, we formulate a new simple model-independent analysis using the Spitzer Photometry and Accurate Rotation Curves data to constrain the range of ULDM mass. In particular, the most stringent constraint comes from the data of a galaxy ESO563–G021, which can conservatively exclude a ULDM mass range m = (0.14–3.11) × 10−22 eV. This model-independent excluded range is consistent with many bounds obtained by recent studies and it suggests that the ULDM proposal may not be able to alleviate the small-scale problems.