{
  "abstract": "Merging galaxy clusters provide an ideal laboratory for testing the self-interacting nature of dark matter. In this paper, we present a pilot study of magnetohydrodynamical cosmological zoom-in simulations of two cluster mergers selected from TNG-Cluster, with $M_{\\rm 200c} \\sim 9\\times10^{14}~M_\\odot$ and $M_{\\rm 200c}\\sim 2\\times10^{14}~M_\\odot$. The simulations are performed with both standard collisionless cold dark matter (CDM) and self-interacting dark matter (SIDM), assuming an isotropic, velocity-independent cross-section of $σ_{\\rm T}/m_χ= 1~\\rm cm^2~g^{-1}$, with an additional $0.5~\\rm cm^2~g^{-1}$ run for the low-mass system, and the mass resolution and galaxy formation model are unchanged from TNG-Cluster. We show how dark matter self-interactions produce an isothermal core in the dark matter halo, generate unique substructures in the intracluster light, and introduce variation in the multi-wavelength observables of the intracluster plasma. Using these simulations, we test the validity of observational probes for dark matter self-interactions in cluster mergers. We find that the shock-to-shock separation shows similar evolution in the self-interaction models tested here, providing a reference for distinguishing the $\\sim100-200~\\rm kpc$-scale difference in halo separation induced by self-interactions. Moreover, the dark matter halo centroid of the main cluster in the massive cluster merger is offset from the brightest cluster galaxy by as much as $\\sim20~\\rm kpc$, larger than the offset in the sub-cluster. This offset persists beyond 4 Gyr after the first pericenter passage. Our results indicate that sample selection plays a key role in testing the possible self-interacting nature of dark matter using cluster mergers, and that double radio relic cluster mergers and massive clusters with evidence of an ancient major merger offer a promising testbed for this purpose.",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [],
  "article_type": null,
  "arxiv": "2610.18957",
  "author_total": 11,
  "authors": [
    {
      "name": "Wonki Lee"
    },
    {
      "name": "Dylan Nelson"
    },
    {
      "name": "Myungkook J. Jee"
    },
    {
      "name": "Giulia Despali"
    },
    {
      "name": "Mark Vogelsberger"
    },
    {
      "name": "Annalisa Pillepich"
    },
    {
      "name": "Cian Roche"
    },
    {
      "name": "Kyle Finner"
    },
    {
      "name": "Hyungjin Joo"
    },
    {
      "name": "Daisuke Nagai"
    },
    {
      "name": "John ZuHone"
    }
  ],
  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/eged0399yv8vq.bib",
  "cited_by": 0,
  "doi": "10.48550/arxiv.2610.18957",
  "fulltext_url": null,
  "id": "eged0399yv8vq",
  "issns": [],
  "landing_url": "https://arxiv.org/abs/2610.18957",
  "language": null,
  "licence": "CC-BY-4.0",
  "licence_label": "CC BY 4.0",
  "licence_source": "article",
  "licence_url": "http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/",
  "metadata_licence": "CC0-1.0",
  "native_subjects": [
    [
      "arxiv",
      "astro-ph.CO"
    ],
    [
      "arxiv",
      "astro-ph.GA"
    ],
    [
      "openalex",
      "3103|Galaxies: Formation, Evolution, Phenomena"
    ]
  ],
  "openalex": "W7222348472",
  "pdf_url": "https://arxiv.org/pdf/2610.18957",
  "pmcid": null,
  "pmid": null,
  "published": "2026-10-13",
  "publisher": null,
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/eged0399yv8vq.ris",
  "sources": [
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-10-30T12:29:31Z",
      "native_id": "2610.18957",
      "source": "arxiv",
      "url": "https://arxiv.org/abs/2610.18957"
    }
  ],
  "subjects": [
    {
      "field": "astronomy",
      "origin": "arxiv:astro-ph.CO",
      "subfield": "cosmology"
    },
    {
      "field": "astronomy",
      "origin": "arxiv:astro-ph.GA",
      "subfield": "galaxies"
    }
  ],
  "title": "TNGC-SIDM I: Evolution of massive cluster mergers under the self-interacting dark matter paradigm",
  "title_text": "TNGC-SIDM I: Evolution of massive cluster mergers under the self-interacting dark matter paradigm",
  "type": "preprint",
  "updated_at": "2026-10-30T12:29:31Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/eged0399yv8vq",
  "venue": "arXiv",
  "versions": []
}