Primordial black holes from Q-balls produced in a first-order phase transition

Abstract

We consider the formation of Q-balls in false vacuum remnants during a cosmological first-order phase transition. We find that under certain circumstances Q-balls can collapse to form primordial black holes. This scenario can produce multimessenger signals that may be observed at upcoming experiments, including 1-100 nHz gravitational waves from the phase transition, and gamma-rays emitted from primordial black holes as Hawking radiation and as superradiance. These signals are quite distinctive, and differ markedly from signals expected from Fermi-balls. The reheating of the dark sector from the phase transition may address the Hubble tension.

Comments: 15 pages, 2 figures. Version to appear in JCAP