Gamma-ray constraints on heavy axion-like-particle decays from Fermi -LAT and H.E.S.S. blazar spectra

Abstract The propagation of very-high-energy (VHE; E γ ≥ 100 GeV) gamma rays from extragalactic sources is affected by interactions with photons of the extragalactic background light (EBL), resulting in pair production that attenuates the intrinsic gamma-ray flux. This interaction renders the Universe increasingly opaque to VHE photons at high energies and redshifts. New physics scenarios involving axion-like particles (ALPs) could modify this expected optical depth. In particular, ALPs with masses m a ∼ 10 eV can decay into two photons over cosmological timescales, thereby contributing to the diffuse EBL. If such ALPs constitute a significant fraction of the dark matter density, their decay would enhance the EBL intensity and consequently increase the gamma-ray optical depth. In this study, we investigate this scenario using a large sample of gamma-ray spectra observed with the High Energy Stereoscopic System (H.E.S.S.) and the Fermi Large Area Telescope. We model the contribution of decaying ALPs to the EBL and assess their impact on the spectra of blazars across redshifts. By comparing these observations with standard EBL models, we place constraints on the properties of heavy ALPs — specifically their mass and photon coupling — and evaluate their viability as a dark matter candidate capable of modifying the gamma-ray transparency of the Universe. From the combined analysis, and under the assumption that ALPs constitute the entire dark matter density, we derive 95% confidence exclusion limits on the photon-ALP coupling down to m aγ ∼ 7×10 -12 GeV -1 for masses m a ∼ 15 eV. These constraints are competitive with existing astrophysical bounds and provide complementary sensitivity to other techniques, closing a previously unconstrained region of parameter space in the m a ∼ 2.5–20 eV range.