Axions, originally proposed to solve the strong CP problem of quantum chromodynamics, emerge now as leading candidates of WISP dark matter. The rich phenomenology associated to the light and stable QCD axion can be described as an effective magnetic field that can be experimentally investigated. For the QUAX experiment, dark matter axions are searched by means of their resonant interactions with electronic spins in a magnetized sample. In principle, axion-induced magnetization changes can be detected by embedding a sample in an rf cavity in a static magnetic field. In this work we describe the operation of a prototype ferromagnetic haloscope, with a sensitivity limited by thermal fluctuations and receiver noise. With a preliminary dark matter search, we are able to set an upper limit on the coupling constant of DFSZ axions to electrons gaee<4.9×10−10 at 95\% C.L. for a mass of 58μeV (i.\,e. 14\,GHz). This is the first experimental result with an apparatus exploiting the coupling between cosmological axions and electrons.
@article{arxiv.1806.00310,
title = {Operation of a ferromagnetic axion haloscope at $m_a=58\,\mu$eV},
author = {N. Crescini and D. Alesini and C. Braggio and G. Carugno and D. Di Gioacchino and C. S. Gallo and U. Gambardella and C. Gatti and G. Iannone and G. Lamanna and C. Ligi and A. Lombardi and A. Ortolan and S. Pagano and R. Pengo and G. Ruoso and C. C. Speake and L. Taffarello},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:1806.00310},
year = {2018}
}