We propose a Rydberg-atom-based single-photon detector for signal readout in dark matter haloscope experiments between 40 μeV and 200 μeV (10 GHz and 50 GHz). At these frequencies, standard haloscope readout using linear amplifiers is limited by quantum measurement noise, which can be avoided by using a single-photon detector. Our single-photon detection scheme can offer scan rate enhancements up to a factor of 104 over traditional linear amplifier readout, and is compatible with many different haloscope cavities. We identify multiple haloscope designs that could use our Rydberg-atom-based single-photon detector to search for QCD axions with masses above 40 μeV (10 GHz), currently a minimally explored parameter space.
@article{arxiv.2310.15352,
title = {Rydberg-atom-based single-photon detection for haloscope axion searches},
author = {Eleanor Graham and Sumita Ghosh and Yuqi Zhu and Xiran Bai and Sidney B. Cahn and Elsa Durcan and Michael J. Jewell and Danielle H. Speller and Sabrina M. Zacarias and Laura T. Zhou and Reina H. Maruyama},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:2310.15352},
year = {2023}
}