Dark Matter and Neutrino Physics with Cryogenic Detectors

使用低温探​​测器的暗物质和中微子物理

• 批准号: 1408089
• 负责人: Enectali Figueroa-Feliciano
• 金额: $ 33.75万
• 依托单位: Massachusetts Institute of Technology
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Continuing Grant
• 财政年份: 2014
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2014-09-01 至 2015-09-30
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1408089&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Dark; Matter; Neutrino; Physics; Cryogenic

Multiple astronomical observations have established that about 85% of the matter in the universe is not made of known particles. Deciphering the nature of this so-called Dark Matter is of fundamental importance to cosmology, astrophysics, and high-energy particle physics. A leading hypothesis is that it is comprised of Weakly Interacting Massive Particles, or WIMPs, that were produced moments after the Big Bang. If WIMPs are the dark matter, then their presence in our galaxy may be detectable via scattering from atomic nuclei in detectors located deep underground to help reject backgrounds due to cosmic rays.The Cryogenic Dark Matter Search (CDMS) Collaboration has pioneered the use of low temperature phonon-mediated detectors to detect the rare scattering of WIMPs on nuclei and distinguish them from backgrounds. This work will have a broad impact which extends beyond the dark matter search. The technical developments will further advance phonon-mediated detectors, which have already found many applications in science and technology.This award will provide funds for three activities:-- The SuperCDMS Soudan experiment is currently taking data which will have world-leading sensitivity to dark matter for masses below 5 gigaelectronvolt (GeV). The experiment will continue taking data next year, and the full set of different analyses of the data will take place over the next two years. MIT has taken a leadership role in the low-threshold analysis, and will continue to do so. -- Play a central role in the design, prototyping, testing, and commissioning of the next-generation experiment. -- Develop and prototype new low-threshold, low-background detectors with enough sensitivity to cover all the available dark matter parameter space for masses between 1-10 GeV down to the irreducible background from solar neutrinos.This award will contribute to the training of undergraduate and graduate students and postdoctoral researchers, continuing the group's strong involvement in mentoring undergraduates from underrepresented groups by participating in the MIT Summer Research Program.

多次天文观察结果表明，宇宙中约有85％的物质不是由已知粒子制成的。破译这种所谓的暗物质的性质对于宇宙学，天体物理学和高能粒子物理学至关重要。一个主要的假设是，它由弱相互作用的巨大颗粒或wimps组成，这些颗粒或wimps是在大爆炸后瞬间产生的。 If WIMPs are the dark matter, then their presence in our galaxy may be detectable via scattering from atomic nuclei in detectors located deep underground to help reject backgrounds due to cosmic rays.The Cryogenic Dark Matter Search (CDMS) Collaboration has pioneered the use of low temperature phonon-mediated detectors to detect the rare scattering of WIMPs on nuclei and distinguish them from backgrounds.这项工作将产生广泛的影响，超出了暗物质搜索。技术发展将进一步推进声子介导的检测器，这些探测器已经在科学和技术中找到了许多应用。该奖项将为三项活动提供资金： - SuperCDMS Soudan实验目前正在获取数据，这些数据将对低于5 gigaelectronvolt（GEV）（GEV）的群众具有世界领先的敏感性。该实验将在明年继续获取数据，并且将在未来两年内进行全套数据分析。麻省理工学院在低阈值分析中扮演了领导角色，并将继续这样做。 - 在下一代实验的设计，原型制作，测试和调试中发挥核心作用。 -- Develop and prototype new low-threshold, low-background detectors with enough sensitivity to cover all the available dark matter parameter space for masses between 1-10 GeV down to the irreducible background from solar neutrinos.This award will contribute to the training of undergraduate and graduate students and postdoctoral researchers, continuing the group's strong involvement in mentoring undergraduates from underrepresented groups by participating in the麻省理工学院夏季研究计划。