Dynamical insight into dark-matter haloes

Abstract

We investigate, using the spherical Jeans equation, self-gravitating dynamical equilibria satisfying a relation rho/sigma_r^3 propto r^-alpha, which holds for simulated dark-matter haloes over their whole resolved radial range. Considering first the case of velocity isotropy, we find that this problem has only one solution with realistic density profile, which occurs only for a critical value of alpha_crit = 35/18 ~= 1.94, which is consistent with the empirical value of 1.9+/-0.05. We extend our analysis in two ways: first we introduce a parameter epsilon to allow for a more general relation rho/\sigma_r^epsilon propto r^-alpha; second we consider velocity anisotropy. If we assume beta(r) := 1- sigma_theta^2 / sigma_r^2 to be linearly related to the logarithmic density slope gamma(r) := -dln(rho)/dln(r), which is in agreement with simulations, the problem remains analytically tractable and is equivalent to the simpler isotropic case: there exists only one physical solution, which occurs at a critical alpha value. Remarkably, this value of alpha and the density and velocity-dispersion profiles depend only on epsilon and the value beta_0 := beta(r=0), but not on the slope of the linear beta-gamma relation. For epsilon=3, alpha_crit = 35/18 - 2beta_0/9 and the resulting density profile is fully analytic (as are the velocity dispersion and circular speed) with an inner cusp rho propto r^{-(7+10beta_0)/9} and a very smooth transition to a steeper outer power-law asymptote. These models are in excellent agreement with the density, velocity-dispersion and anisotropy profiles of simulated dark-matter haloes over their full resolved radial range. If epsilon=3 is a universal constant, some scatter in beta_0 ~= 0 may account for some diversity in the density profiles. (ABRIDGED)