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Main Authors: Haque, Md Riajul, Karmakar, Rajesh, Mambrini, Yann
Format: Preprint
Published: 2026
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Online Access:https://arxiv.org/abs/2601.16717
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author Haque, Md Riajul
Karmakar, Rajesh
Mambrini, Yann
author_facet Haque, Md Riajul
Karmakar, Rajesh
Mambrini, Yann
contents We study the evolution of primordial black holes (PBHs) formed in the early universe in the presence of a surrounding thermal bath. By incorporating the effects of thermal absorption, we show that PBHs can undergo significant mass growth, leading to extended lifetimes and substantial deviations from the standard Hawking evaporation scenario. We find a critical collapse efficiency, $γ_{\rm c} \simeq 0.395$, above which the PBH mass grows without bound. This correction has profound implications for both PBH-induced reheating and dark matter (DM) production. Specifically, we find that the reheating temperature can be suppressed, and the DM parameter space for the PBH reheating scenario can undergo $\mathcal{O}(10)$-$\mathcal{O}(10^4)$ corrections, depending on the PBH formation mass and collapse efficiency. Moreover, our results significantly shift the parameter space in which PBHs can account for the entirety of the DM. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first comprehensive phenomenological study to incorporate thermal absorption into PBH evolution and quantify its impact on cosmological observables.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2601_16717
institution arXiv
publishDate 2026
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle When Primordial Black Holes Absorb During the Early Universe
Haque, Md Riajul
Karmakar, Rajesh
Mambrini, Yann
Cosmology and Nongalactic Astrophysics
High Energy Physics - Phenomenology
We study the evolution of primordial black holes (PBHs) formed in the early universe in the presence of a surrounding thermal bath. By incorporating the effects of thermal absorption, we show that PBHs can undergo significant mass growth, leading to extended lifetimes and substantial deviations from the standard Hawking evaporation scenario. We find a critical collapse efficiency, $γ_{\rm c} \simeq 0.395$, above which the PBH mass grows without bound. This correction has profound implications for both PBH-induced reheating and dark matter (DM) production. Specifically, we find that the reheating temperature can be suppressed, and the DM parameter space for the PBH reheating scenario can undergo $\mathcal{O}(10)$-$\mathcal{O}(10^4)$ corrections, depending on the PBH formation mass and collapse efficiency. Moreover, our results significantly shift the parameter space in which PBHs can account for the entirety of the DM. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first comprehensive phenomenological study to incorporate thermal absorption into PBH evolution and quantify its impact on cosmological observables.
title When Primordial Black Holes Absorb During the Early Universe
topic Cosmology and Nongalactic Astrophysics
High Energy Physics - Phenomenology
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2601.16717