'''Weakly interacting massive particles''' ('''WIMPs''') are hypothetical particles that are one of the proposed candidates for [[dark matter]].
There exists no formal definition of a WIMP, but broadly, it is a new [[elementary particle]] which interacts via [[gravity]] and any other force (or forces), potentially not part of the [[Standard Model]] itself, which is as weak as or weaker than the [[weak nuclear force]], but also non-vanishing in its strength. Many WIMP candidates are expected to have been produced thermally in the early Universe, similarly to the particles of the [[Standard Model]]<ref>{{cite journal | last = Garrett | first = Katherine | title = Dark matter: A primer | year = 2010 | journal = Advances in Astronomy | volume = 2011 | issue = 968283 | pages = 1–22 | doi = 10.1155/2011/968283| arxiv = 1006.2483 | bibcode = 2011AdAst2011E...8G | doi-access = free }}</ref> according to [[Big Bang]] cosmology, and usually will constitute [[cold dark matter]].
Obtaining the correct abundance of dark matter today via [[thermal production]] requires a self-[[annihilation]] [[Cross section (physics)|cross section]] of <math>\langle \sigma v \rangle \simeq 3 \times 10^{-26} \mathrm{cm}^{3} \;\mathrm{s}^{-1}</math>, which is roughly what is expected for a new particle in the 100 [[GeV]] mass range that interacts via the [[electroweak force]].
Experimental efforts to detect WIMPs include the search for products of WIMP annihilation, including [[gamma ray]]s, [[neutrino]]s and [[cosmic ray]]s in nearby galaxies and galaxy clusters; direct detection experiments designed to measure the collision of WIMPs with [[Atomic nucleus|nuclei]] in the laboratory, as well as attempts to directly produce WIMPs in colliders, such as the LHC.
Because [[supersymmetry|supersymmetric]] extensions of the [[Standard Model]] of particle physics readily predict a new particle with these properties, this apparent coincidence is known as the "'''WIMP miracle'''", and a stable supersymmetric partner has long been a prime WIMP candidate.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Jungman |first1=Gerard |last2=Kamionkowski |first2=Marc |last3=Griest |first3=Kim |year=1996 |title=Supersymmetric dark matter |journal=Physics Reports |volume=267 |issue=5–6 |pages=195–373 |s2cid=119067698 |arxiv=hep-ph/9506380 |bibcode=1996PhR...267..195J |doi=10.1016/0370-1573(95)00058-5}}</ref> However, recent null results from [[Dark matter#Direct detection|direct-detection]] experiments along with the failure to produce evidence of supersymmetry in the [[Large Hadron Collider]] (LHC) experiment<ref>{{cite news |url=http://news.discovery.com/space/lhc-discovery-maims-supersymmetry-again-130724.htm |title=LHC discovery maims supersymmetry again |website=Discovery News}}</ref><ref>{{cite arXiv |last=Craig |first=Nathaniel |year=2013 |title=The State of Supersymmetry after Run I of the LHC |class=hep-ph |eprint=1309.0528}}</ref> has cast doubt on the simplest WIMP hypothesis.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Fox |first1=Patrick J. |last2=Jung |first2=Gabriel |last3=Sorensen |first3=Peter |last4=Weiner |first4=Neal |year=2014 |title=Dark matter in light of LUX |journal=Physical Review D |volume=89 |issue=10 |page=103526 |arxiv=1401.0216 |bibcode=2014PhRvD..89j3526F |doi=10.1103/PhysRevD.89.103526}}</ref>
