Migdal effect and photon Bremsstrahlung: improving the sensitivity of dark matter direct detection experiments.

Anno
2020
Proponente Stefano Piacentini - Assegnista di ricerca
Sottosettore ERC del proponente del progetto
PE2_2
Componenti gruppo di ricerca
Componente Categoria
Andrea Messina Tutor di riferimento
Abstract

The search for dark matter weakly interacting massive particles with noble liquids has probed masses down and below a GeV/c^2. The ultimate limit is represented by the experimental threshold on the energy transfer to the nuclear recoil. Currently, the experimental sensitivity has reached a threshold equivalent to a few ionization electrons. In these conditions, the contribution of a Bremsstrahlung photon or a so-called Migdal electron due to the sudden acceleration of a nucleus after a collision might be sizable: I studied how these effects can be exploited in experiments based on liquid argon detectors and summarised the relevant results in a recent publication currently under review by the journal [1].
This project has the goal to further investigate the impact of Migdal effect and photon Bremsstrahlung in extending the search region for dark matter particles also for direct detection experiments based on different active materials. In this context it is crucial to develop a robust analysis framework which can provide new sensitivity bounds in the mass regions currently inaccessible by modeling the signal only with the traditional nuclear recoil interaction.

[1] G. Grilli di Cortona, A. Messina and S. Piacentini, "Migdal effect and photon Bremsstrahlung: improving the sensitivity to light dark matter of liquid argon experiments", arXiv:2006.02453

ERC
PE2_2, PE2_1
Keywords:
MATERIA OSCURA ED ENERGIA OSCURA, TECNICHE DI ANALISI DI DATI, FISICA ASTROPARTICELLARE

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