Collaborative Research (RUI): Search for Exotic Transient Spin-dependent Signals from Ultralight Dark Matter Fields

合作研究（RUI）：从超轻暗物质场中寻找奇异的瞬态自旋相关信号

基本信息

批准号：
1707803
负责人：
Jason Stalnaker
金额：
$ 23.5万
依托单位：
Oberlin College
依托单位国家：
美国
项目类别：
Continuing Grant
财政年份：
2017
资助国家：
美国
起止时间：
2017-05-15 至 2021-04-30
项目状态：
已结题

来源：
https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1707803&HistoricalAwards=false
关键词：
Collaborative Research RUI Search Exotic

项目摘要

A host of astrophysical and cosmological measurements have conclusively established that over 85% of all matter in the Universe is dark matter. Understanding the nature of dark matter is one of the greatest challenges of modern physics and is of paramount importance in understanding the origin and structure of the universe. A theoretically well-motivated possibility is that the dark matter consists of ultralight fields, corresponding to particles of very low mass. The mass-energy associated with dark matter is then primarily stored in oscillations of the dark matter field or in localized defects. If the dark matter takes this form, then instead of being bathed in a uniform dark matter flux, terrestrial detectors will witness transient events when the Earth passes through a dark matter clump or a kind of domain wall such as is found in a magnetized material such as nickel. This award provides support to operate, expand, and significantly upgrade a network of geographically separated, time-synchronized atomic magnetometers to search for correlated transient signals heralding new physics.Both institutions have a strong history of diversity, with CSU - East Bay being the most diverse university in the continental United States and Oberlin College being the first college to admit African American students and women in a co-educational setting on a regular basis. The proposed research programs are at the vanguard of attracting and retaining women and underrepresented minority physicists.The Global Network of Optical Magnetometers to search for Exotic physics (GNOME) is sensitive to nuclear and electron spin couplings to various exotic particles and fields. To date, no such search for transient spin-dependent interactions has ever been carried out, making the proposed research a completely novel experimental window on new physics. In addition to carrying out a dedicated long-term search using the existing GNOME during the first year of the grant, the GNOME will be upgraded in order to dramatically improve its sensitivity.

大量天体物理学和宇宙学测量已最终确定，宇宙中超过 85% 的物质是暗物质。了解暗物质的本质是现代物理学面临的最大挑战之一，对于理解宇宙的起源和结构至关重要。理论上一个有充分理由的可能性是，暗物质由超轻场组成，对应于质量非常低的粒子。与暗物质相关的质能主要存储在暗物质场的振荡或局部缺陷中。如果暗物质采取这种形式，那么当地球穿过暗物质团块或一种磁畴壁（例如在磁化材料中发现的磁畴壁）时，地面探测器将目睹瞬态事件，而不是沐浴在均匀的暗物质通量中。如镍。该奖项为操作、扩展和显着升级地理上分离的、时间同步的原子磁力计网络提供支持，以搜索预示着新物理学的相关瞬态信号。这两个机构都拥有悠久的多样性历史，其中科罗拉多州立大学东湾分校是最多元化的。欧柏林学院是美国大陆多元化的大学，是第一所定期招收非裔美国学生和女性的男女同校的学院。拟议的研究项目是吸引和留住女性和代表性不足的少数族裔物理学家的先锋。寻找奇异物理学的全球光磁力计网络（GNOME）对核和电子自旋与各种奇异粒子和场的耦合很敏感。迄今为止，还没有对瞬态自旋相关相互作用进行过这样的搜索，这使得这项研究成为新物理学的全新实验窗口。除了在拨款的第一年使用现有的 GNOME 进行专门的长期搜索外，GNOME 还将进行升级，以显着提高其灵敏度。