Bulletin of the American Physical Society
52nd Annual Meeting of the APS Division of Atomic, Molecular and Optical Physics
Volume 66, Number 6
Monday–Friday, May 31–June 4 2021; Virtual; Time Zone: Central Daylight Time, USA
Session Z04: Searches for Dark Matter and Dark EnergyLive
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Sponsoring Units: GPMFC Chair: Derek Kimball, California State University, East Bay |
Friday, June 4, 2021 10:30AM - 10:42AM Live |
Z04.00001: Search for exotic low-mass fields with a global magnetometer network Sami S Khamis, Ibrahim Sulai, Paul Hamilton The Global Network of Optical Magnetometers for Exotic physics searches (GNOME) is a network of geographically separated, time-synchronized, optically pumped atomic magnetometers searching for correlated transient signals that might herald exotic physics [1]. Quantum sensor networks provide an additional tool in multi-messenger astronomy to probe high-energy astrophysical events for signals predicted by beyond-standard-model (BSM) theories. We present a method to use the GNOME to search for coherent, intense bursts of exotic low-mass fields (ELFs) that could be produced alongside gravitational waves (GWs) [2] and fast radio bursts (FRBs). The two stage analysis uses a model agnostic excess power statistic [3] to first identify network-wide high power events which are then subjected to a generalized likelihood ratio test. We construct Feldman-Cousins confidence belts [4] to constrain detectable ELF signal amplitudes. |
Friday, June 4, 2021 10:42AM - 10:54AM Live |
Z04.00002: Searching for ultralight axion-like dark matter using precision magnetometry and magnetic resonance Alexander Sushkov I will describe two precision experiments searching for ultralight axion-like dark matter. The SHAFT experiment is sensitive to the electromagnetic coupling in the 12 peV to 12 neV mass range. The CASPEr-e experiment is sensitive to the EDM and the gradient couplings in the 162 neV to 166 neV mass range. These two searches have recently produced leading experimental limits on all three of the possible interactions of axion-like dark matter in those mass ranges. |
Friday, June 4, 2021 10:54AM - 11:06AM Live |
Z04.00003: Status of CASPEr-gradient and latest spin-noise measurement results anam toaha, Janos Adam, Samer Afach-Johannes, Deniz Aybas, Hendrik Bekker, John Blanchard, Emmy Blumenthal, Dmitry Budker, Gary Centres, Martin Engler, Nataniel L Figueroa, Antoine Garcon, Peter Graham, Alexander Gramolin, Doriah Johnson, Derek Jackson-Kimball, Annalies M Kleyheeg, Matthew Lawson, Haosu Luo, Philip Mauskopf, Surjeet Rajendran, Alexander Sushkov, Tao Wang, Arne Wickenbrock Janos Adam, Samer Afach, Deniz Aybas, Hendrik Bekker, John W. Blanchard, Emmy Blumenthal, Dmitry Budker, Gary P. Centers, Martin Engler, Nataniel Leigh Figueroa, |
Friday, June 4, 2021 11:06AM - 11:18AM Live |
Z04.00004: Windchime: first steps towards realizing mechanical detector arrays for particle physics Sohitri Ghosh Recent advances in the mechanical sensing technologies provide a novel pathway in searches for dark matter and other particle physics targets. The operations of individual sensors are now approaching the quantum-limited regime, where the sensitivity is set by noise caused by Heisenberg uncertainty. However, the scalability of these devices to large arrays remains a key challenge to be addressed before the full benefit of these sensors can be realized, including improved sensitivity, energy and direction estimation, and background rejection. Here we discuss the initial progress made by the Windchime collaboration, an interdisciplinary group of quantum sensing and particle physics researchers, in the construction and operation of an array of many mechanical sensors to search for dark matter. Such an array will have immediate reach for novel searches for certain ultra-light and composite dark matter particles, and ultimately could be used for direct detection purely through gravity. |
Friday, June 4, 2021 11:18AM - 11:30AM Live |
Z04.00005: Strategies and first measurements for a directional dark matter detector in diamond Mason C Marshall, Reza Ebadi, Matthew J Turner, Connor A Hart, Pauli Kehayias, Mark J Ku, David F Phillips, Ronald L Walsworth During the next decade, direct detection searches for weakly interacting massive particles (WIMP) dark matter (DM) will likely reach the "neutrino floor," the sensitivity at which they will be limited by coherent scattering of solar neutrinos. Directional detection would enable WIMP searches beyond this limit by discriminating events of solar and galactic origin. In a crystalline detector, WIMP- and neutrino-induced nuclear recoils would leave a sub-micron track of lattice damage, giving a durable signal for the incoming particle's direction. Measuring such a track could thus provide directional discrimination in a solid-state detector. Diamond has been proposed as a next-generation WIMP detector because of its sensitivity to low-mass DM candidates, as well as its excellent cryogenic semiconductor properties. We are developing methods for directional detection in a diamond detector. Spectroscopy of quantum defects such as nitrogen vacancy (NV) centers allows detection of crystal damage via the strain induced in the crystal lattice, while methods such as X-ray diffraction allow nanoscale mapping of crystal structure. In this talk, we present the proposed directional detection principle as well as an overview of recent experimental results. |
Friday, June 4, 2021 11:30AM - 11:42AM Live |
Z04.00006: Precision NV-Diamond Strain Imaging for Directional Dark Matter Detection Reza Ebadi, Mason C Marshall, Connor A Hart, Matthew J Turner, David F Phillips, Ronald L Walsworth We use pulsed quantum sensing protocols for improved strain imaging using ensembles of nitrogen-vacancy (NV) centers in diamond. This work is a step toward assessing feasibility of directional dark matter detection in a diamond-based detector. In such a detector, NV-based strain imaging would localize potential dark matter damage tracks in a micron-size voxel within a millimeter-sized diamond detector segment. Subsequent superresolution NV spectroscopy or high-resolution x-ray tomography, within the voxel of interest, would reveal required directional information. On the other hand, it is well-known that strain inhomogeneities affect magnetic field sensing--one of the main applications of NV centers. These results could also inform new avenues toward material development, enabling higher precision magnetometry. We have applied these methods to a variety of diamond samples grown under different conditions, to characterize the strain distribution and suitability for dark matter detection. Here, we present our latest results and outlook for future improvements. |
Friday, June 4, 2021 11:42AM - 11:54AM Live |
Z04.00007: Milky Way Accelerometry via Pulsar Timing to Probe the Distribution of Dark Matter David F Phillips, Aakash Ravi, Reza Ebadi, Ronald L Walsworth Dark matter is the dominant matter in the universe, yet its nature and origin remain unknown. Determining the distribution of dark matter in the Milky Way Galaxy is crucial to grounding searches for the particles comprising dark matter. Measurements of the galactic dark matter content currently rely on equilibrium assumptions to infer the forces acting upon stars from the distribution of observed velocities. Millisecond pulsars, with temporal stability rivaling even some terrestrial atomic clocks at long timescales, can be used as an ensemble of accelerometers in the galactic neighborhood. From these pulsars we can directly extract the local galactic acceleration. We present two methods of extracting the galactic acceleration. First, from pulsar spin period measurements, we demonstrate acceleration sensitivity with about 1σ precision using 117 pulsars. In a second method, we analyze the orbital periods of 13 binary pulsar systems that eliminates systematics associated with pulsar braking and results in a local acceleration of (1.7±0.5)×10-10 m/s2 in good agreement with expectations. This work is a first step toward dynamically measuring acceleration gradients that will eventually inform us about the dark matter density distribution in the Milky Way Galaxy. |
Friday, June 4, 2021 11:54AM - 12:06PM Live |
Z04.00008: High frequency gravitational waves & dark matter detection with levitated nano objects George P Winstone, nancy aggarwal, Shane L Larson, Vicky Kalogera, mae teo, masha Baryakhtar, Andrew A Geraci We present an update on the high frequency gravitational wave detector project at Northwestern (Levitated Sensor Detector - LSD). We discuss updated theoretical results for detecting gravitational waves in the 10-100Khz frequency band, with a levitated nano object optically suspended within a cavity as a complementary instrument to experiments like LIGO. The experimental setup under construction in our lab is detailed and several optimizations to the initial proposal are outlined. Finally, the system is placed within the context of newly analysed predicted sources within such a frequency band. |
Friday, June 4, 2021 12:06PM - 12:18PM Live |
Z04.00009: Search for stochastic fluctuations of ultralight bosonic dark matter fields with a global magnetometer network Christopher A Palm, Ariday Bordon, Christopher R Verga, Tatum Z Wilson, Rayshaun D Preston, Muhammad Saeed, Amy Saputo, Hector Masia Roig, Joseph A Smiga, Nataniel L Figueroa, Arne Wickenbrock, Derek F Kimball If dark matter is an ultralight bosonic field that conforms to the standard halo model, then the bosons are virialized in the gravitational potential of the Milky Way. Due to the bosons' randomized velocities, different field modes interfere with one another resulting in stochastic fluctuations of the net field [Centers et al., arXiv:1905.13650 (2020)]. If the coherence length of the virialized bosonic field is large compared to the diameter of the Earth, global sensor networks could detect common mode fluctuations of the bosonic dark matter field. Here we present preliminary results of a search for correlated fluctuations in data from the Global Network of Optical Magnetometers for Exotic physics [GNOME, see Afach et al., Physics of the Dark Universe 22, 162 (2018)]. |
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