Minimal Proton-Mass Dark Matter

Abstract

We present a minimal dark matter scenario: a single complex scalar carrying baryon and lepton number, with no new exact stabilizing symmetry. Its leading interaction is a dimension-7 semileptonic portal that, below confinement, generates a low-energy Yukawa coupling with the proton and electron. Requiring absolute stability of both the proton and dark matter forces the dark matter mass into a narrow window around the proton mass, which may be anthropically selected. Despite its minimal field content, the model can be probed by many observables: proton burning in stars, hydrogen decay, brown dwarfs and neutron star heating, and nucleon decay-like signatures in direct detection. UV-dominated freeze-in produces the observed relic abundance. This framework provides a unique testable example of dark matter arising from a minimal extension of the Standard Model.