Particle and Astroparticle Physics Seminar

Past, Present and Future of Dark Matter Direct Detection Searches

Pietro Giampa

TRIUMF

With multiple cosmological and astrophysical evidence supporting its existence, Dark Matter is estimated to comprise up to 27% of the entire universe. Expected to be made of non-relativistic particles, which do not interact with light, the true nature of Dark Matter remains one of the fundamental questions in modern physics today. Currently, Weakly Interacting Massive Particles (WIMPs) are the most theoretically supported candidate, and therefore, a multiplicity of experiments have been and are searching for direct interactions between WIMPs and target nuclei. Because of the non-relativistic nature of Dark Matter, the kinetic energy of WIMP-induced coherent elastic recoil is small, less than a few hundred keV, and considering that the interaction cross-section is expected to be small, of the order of the weak scale, reducing and understanding backgrounds is crucial for these experiments. While no direct observation has been made yet, the field remain extremely vibrant. In this talk we will review the past, present and future of Dark Matter direct detection experiments, with particular emphasis on liquid-nobel based detectors. We will conclude by highlighting the R&D program necessary to lead to the ultimate generation group of Dark Matter experiments.