Generic dark matter signature for gamma-ray telescopes

We describe a characteristic signature of dark matter (DM) annihilation or decay into gamma rays. We show that if the total angular momentum of the initial DM particle(s) vanishes, and helicity suppression operates to prevent annihilation/decay into light fermion pairs, then the amplitude for the dominant 3-body final state f+f-γ has a unique form dictated by gauge invariance. This amplitude and the corresponding energy spectra hold for annihilation of DM Majorana fermions or self-conjugate scalars, and for decay of DM scalars, thus encompassing a variety of possibilities. Within this scenario, we analyze Fermi LAT, PAMELA, and HESS data, and predict a hint in future Fermi gamma-ray data that portends a striking signal at atmospheric Cherenkov telescopes.