Related papers: Directly Detecting MeV-scale Dark Matter via Solar…
Detection of electron recoils by dark matter (DM) may reveal the structure of the dark sector. We consider a scenario where a heavier DM particle inelastically scatters off an electron and is converted into a lighter DM particle. A small…
We revisit the detection of luminous dark matter in direct detection experiments. In this scenario, dark matter scatters endothermically to produce an excited state, which decays to produce a photon. We explore ways in which the electron…
Galactic weak-scale Dark Matter (DM) particles annihilating into lepton-rich channels not only produce gamma-rays via prompt radiation but also generate abundant energetic electrons and positrons, which subsequently emit through…
Dark matter particles can be captured by the sun with rates that depend on the dark matter mass and the DM-nucleon cross section. However, for masses below $\sim 3.3$ GeV, the captured dark matter particles evaporate, leading to an…
Direct detection experiments utilizing electronic excitations are spearheading the search for light, sub-GeV, dark matter (DM). It is thus crucial to have accurate predictions for any DM-electron interaction rate in this regime. EXCEED-DM…
We describe a novel search for MeV-to-GeV-mass dark matter, in which the dark matter scatters off electrons in a scintillating target. The excitation and subsequent de-excitation of the electron produces one or more photons, which could be…
A fraction of the dark matter in the solar neighborhood might be composed of non-galactic particles with speeds larger than the escape velocity of the Milky Way. The non-galactic dark matter flux would enhance the sensitivity of direct…
Semiconductors are by now well-established targets for direct detection of MeV to GeV dark matter via scattering off electrons. We show that semiconductor targets can also detect significantly lighter dark matter via an absorption process.…
Several direct detection experiments, including recently CDMS-II, have reported signals consistent with 5 to 10 GeV dark matter (DM) that appear to be in tension with null results from XENON and LUX experiments; these indicate a careful…
In direct dark matter (DM) detection via scattering off the electrons, the momentum transfer plays a crucial role. Previous work showed that for self-interacting DM, if the DM particle has a size (the so-called puffy DM), the radius effect…
Measuring dark matter (DM) signals via electron recoil provides an important means for direct detection of light DM particles. The recent XENON1T anomaly with electron recoil energy around $\,E_R^{}\!=\!(2-3)$keV can be naturally explained…
Recent results from several direct detection experiments have imposed severe constraints on the multi-GeV mass window for various dark matter (DM) models. However, many of these experiments are not sensitive to MeV scale DM as the…
In this thesis, we present a comprehensive and pedagogical overview of dark matter (DM). Chapter 1 discusses the main evidences for its existence, its properties, and potential candidates. We then explore major detection strategies, with…
Conventional dark matter direct detection experiments set stringent constraints on dark matter by looking for elastic scattering events between dark matter particles and nuclei in underground detectors. However these constraints weaken…
This study explores a two-component dark matter model in which one component, heavier dark matter, annihilates into a lighter dark matter. The lighter dark matter is expected to generate detectable signals in detectors due to its enhanced…
The direct detection of sub-GeV dark matter interacting with nucleons is hampered by the low recoil energies induced by scatterings in the detectors. This experimental difficulty is avoided in the scenario of boosted dark matter where a…
Semiconductors with $\mathcal{O}(\text{meV})$ band gaps have been shown to be promising targets to search for sub-MeV mass dark matter (DM). In this paper we focus on a class of materials where such narrow band gaps arise naturally as a…
Dark matter particles with masses in the sub-GeV range have escaped severe constraints from direct detection experiments such as LUX, PANDAX-II and XENON100 as the corresponding recoil energies are, largely, lower than the detector…
A novel idea of the direct detection to search for a ultralight dark matter based on the interaction between the dark matter and a nucleon is proposed. Solar system bodies feel the dark matter wind and it acts as a resistant force opposing…
We revisit dark matter (DM) capture in celestial objects, including the impact of multiple scattering, and obtain updated constraints on the DM-proton cross section using observations of white dwarfs. Considering a general form for the…