Related papers: Integrating Out Astrophysical Uncertainties
In Dark Matter direct detection we are facing the situation of some experiments reporting positive signals which are in conflict with limits from other experiments. Such conclusions are subject to large uncertainties introduced by the…
Light WIMP dark matter and hidden sector dark matter have been proposed to explain the DAMA, CoGeNT and CRESST-II data. Both of these approaches feature spin independent elastic scattering of dark matter particles on nuclei. Light WIMP dark…
This thesis explores experimental and theoretical approaches to dark matter detection, from gas-based detectors to quantum sensors, tackling the challenge of identifying dark matter, which makes up 27% of the Universe's energy. It reviews…
Mirror dark matter offers a framework to explain the existing dark matter direct detection experiments. Here we confront this theory with the most recent experimental data, paying attention to the various known systematic uncertainties, in…
We investigate the possibility for the direct detection of low mass (GeV scale) WIMP dark matter in scintillation experiments. Such WIMPs are typically too light to leave appreciable nuclear recoils, but may be detected via their scattering…
Mirror dark matter interacting with ordinary matter via photon-mirror photon kinetic mixing can explain the DAMA, CoGeNT and CRESSTII direct detection experiments. This explanation requires kinetic mixing of strength $\epsilon \sim…
Recent observations by the CoGeNT collaboration (as well as long standing observations by DAMA/LIBRA) suggest the presence of a $\sim 5$-10 GeV dark matter particle with a somewhat large elastic scattering cross section with nucleons…
The CoGeNT collaboration has recently reported a rising low energy spectrum in their ultra low noise germanium detector. This is particularly interesting as the energy range probed by CoGeNT overlaps with the energy region in which DAMA has…
Hints of direct dark matter detection coming from the DAMA, CoGeNT experiments point toward light dark matter with isospin-violating and possibly inelastic couplings. However an array of astrophysical constraints are rapidly closing the…
Next-generation dark matter direct detection experiments will explore several orders of magnitude in the dark matter--nucleus scattering cross section below current upper limits. In case a signal is discovered the immediate task will be to…
We consider the velocity dependence arising from scattering through dark multipole moments, and its effects on the consistency of the signals observed by DAMA and CoGeNT with the dark matter hypothesis. We focus on the effects of the…
For many years annually modulating $\sim$ keV scintillations have been observed in the DAMA/NaI and DAMA/Libra experiments. A dark matter - electron scattering interpretation is now favoured given the stringent constraints on nuclear recoil…
The relative sensitivity of different direct detection experiments depends sensitively on the astrophysical distribution and particle physics nature of dark matter, prohibiting a model-independent comparison. The situation changes…
We present two examples of velocity distributions for light dark matter particles that reconcile the annual modulation signal observed by DAMA with all other negative results from dark matter searches. They are: (1) a conventional…
While dark matter (DM) is the key ingredient for a successful theory of structure formation, its microscopic nature remains elusive. Indirect detection may provide a powerful test for some strongly motivated DM particle models.…
We extend the halo-independent method of Fox, Liu, and Weiner to include energy resolution and efficiency with arbitrary energy dependence, making it more suitable for experiments to use in presenting their results. Then we compare…
The DAMA experiment searches for Weakly Interacting Massive Particle (WIMP) dark matter via its expected but rare interactions within the detector, where the interaction rates will modulate throughout the year due to the orbital motion of…
Particle dark matter could have a mass anywhere from that of ultralight candidates, $m_\chi\sim 10^{-21}\,$eV, to scales well above the GeV. Conventional laboratory searches are sensitive to a range of masses close to the weak scale, while…
A new frontier in the search for dark matter (DM) is based on the idea of detecting the decoherence caused by DM scattering against a mesoscopic superposition of normal matter. Such superpositions are uniquely sensitive to very small…
We show that compatibility between the DAMA modulation result (as well as less statistically significant excesses such as the CDMS Silicon effect and the excess claimed by CRESST) with constraints from other experiments can be achieved by…