Antiprotons in cosmic rays from neutralino annihilation

Abstract

We calculate the antiproton flux due to relic neutralino annihilations, in a two-dimensional diffusion model compatible with stable and radioactive cosmic ray nuclei. We find that the uncertainty in the primary flux induced by the propagation parameters alone is about two orders of magnitude at low energies, and it is mainly determined by the lack of knowledge of the thickness of the diffusive halo. On the contrary, different dark matter density profiles do not significantly alter the flux: a Novarro-Frenk-White distribution produces fluxes which are at most 20% higher than an isothermal sphere. The most conservative choice for propagation parameters and dark matter distribution normalization, together with current data on cosmic antiprotons, cannot lead to any definitive constraint on the supersymmetric parameter space, either in a low-energy effective minimal supersymmetric standard model, or in a minimal supergravity scheme. However, if the best choice for propagation parameters---corresponding to a diffusive halo of $L=4\mathrm{kpc}$---is adopted, some supersymmetric configurations with the neutralino mass ${m}_{\ensuremath{\chi}}\ensuremath{\lesssim}100\mathrm{GeV}$ should be considered as excluded. An enhancement flux factor---due for instance to a clumpy dark halo or a higher local dark matter density---would imply a more severe cut on the supersymmetric parameters.