We explore simplified models of mixed dark matter (DM), defined here to be a stable relic composed of a singlet and an electroweak charged state. Our setup describes a broad spectrum of thermal DM candidates that can naturally accommodate the observed DM abundance but are subject to substantial constraints from current and upcoming direct detection experiments. We identify ``blind spots'' at which the DM-Higgs coupling is identically zero, thus nullifying direct detection constraints on spin independent scattering. Furthermore, we characterize the fine-tuning in mixing angles, i.e. well-tempering, required for thermal freeze-out to accommodate the observed abundance. Present and projected limits from LUX and XENON1T force many thermal relic models into blind spot tuning, well-tempering, or both. This simplified model framework generalizes bino-Higgsino DM in the MSSM, singlino-Higgsino DM in the NMSSM, and scalar DM candidates that appear in models of extended Higgs sectors.
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A 2014 study studied this question.