A high-Q microwave dielectric resonator for axion dark matter haloscopes
R. Di Vora, D. Alesini, C. Braggio, G. Carugno, N. Crescini, D. D Agostino, D. Di Gioacchino, P. Falferi, U. Gambardella, C. Gatti, G. Iannone, C. Ligi, A. Lomb… 展开作者
R. Di Vora, D. Alesini, C. Braggio, G. Carugno, N. Crescini, D. D Agostino, D. Di Gioacchino, P. Falferi, U. Gambardella, C. Gatti, G. Iannone, C. Ligi, A. Lombardi, G. Maccarrone, A. Ortolan, R. Pengo, A. Rettaroli, G. Ruoso, L. Taffarello, S. Tocci
The frequency band 1-15 GHz provides exciting prospects for resonant axion haloscopes as indicated by cosmological and astrophysical arguments. Among the challenges currently addressed to reach the required sensitivity, the development of high quality factor cavities that tolerate multi-Tesla fields plays a central role.
We report a 3D resonator based on a right circular copper cavity with hollow cylinders that confine higher order modes around the cylinder axis. Its effective volume at 10.3\,GHz is $3.4 \cdot 10^{-2}$ liters, and under an 8\,T-field we measured an internal quality factor of more than 9 millions. These parameters demonstrate the potential of this unique resonator to probe galactic dark matter axion at remarkable scan rates of 15\,MHz/day when the cavity is readout by a quantum-limited receiver.
Axions are a popular dark matter candidate which are often searched for in experiments known as ``haloscopes" which exploit a putative axion-photon coupling. These experiments typically rely on Transverse Magnetic (TM) modes in resonant cavities to capture and detect photons generated via axion conversion. We present a study of a resonant cavity design for application in haloscope searches, of particular use in the push to higher mass axion searches (above $\sim$60$\,μ$eV). In particular, we take advantage of azimuthally varying TM$_{m10}$ modes which, whilst typically insensitive to axions du…
The axion was first introduced as a consequence of the Peccei-Quinn mechanism to solve the CP problem in strong interactions of particle physics and is a well motivated cold dark matter candidate. This particle is expected to interact extremely weakly with matter and its mass is expected to lie in $μ$eV range with the corresponding frequency roughly in GHz range. In 1983 P. Sikivie proposed a detection scheme, so called axion haloscope, where axions resonantly convert to photons in a tunable microwave cavity permeated by a strong magnetic field. A major source of the experimental noise is attr…
Axion haloscope detectors use microwave cavities permeated by a magnetic field to resonate photons that are converted from axions due to the inverse Primakoff effect. The sensitivity of a detector is proportional to the form factor of the cavity's search mode. Transverse symmetry breaking is used to tune the search modes for scanning across a range of axion masses. However, numerical analysis shows transverse and longitudinal symmetry breaking reduce the sensitivity of the search mode. Simulations also show longitudinal symmetry breaking leads to other undesired consequences like mode mixing a…
With the axion being a prime candidate for dark matter, there has been some recent interest in direct detection through a so called `Ferromagnetic haloscope.' Such devices exploit the coupling between axions and electrons in the form of collective spin excitations of magnetic materials with the readout through a microwave cavity. Here, we present a new, general, theoretical treatment of such experiments in a Hamiltonian formulation for strongly coupled magnons and photons, which hybridise as cavity-magnon polaritons. Such strongly coupled systems have an extended measurable dispersive regime. …
The Center for Axion and Precision Physics Research (CAPP) was founded in 2013, with the ambition of shedding light on the strong CP problem and the proposed existence of axions. Much of CAPP's effort focuses on the direct detection of dark matter candidate axions with a series of local haloscope experiments, which endeavour to expand dramatically the coverage on the "invisible axion" mass range. The first two of them plan experimental runs during this year, tapping into ultra-low cryogenics and toroidal cavity geometries. The overall programme builds on cutting-edge technology, including deve…
Dielectric axion haloscopes, such as the MADMAX experiment, are promising concepts for the direct search for dark matter axions. A reliable simulation is a fundamental requirement for the successful realisation of the experiments. Due to the complexity of the simulations, the demands on computing resources can quickly become prohibitive. In this paper, we show for the first time that modern deep learning techniques can be applied to aid the simulation and optimisation of dielectric haloscopes.
The present state of the art axion haloscope employs a cylindrical resonant cavity in a solenoidal field. We, the Center for Axion and Precision Physics Research (CAPP) of the Institute for Basic Science (IBS) in Korea, are also pursuing halo axion discovery using this cylindrical geometry. However, the presence of end caps of cavities increases challenges as we explore higher frequency regions for the axion at above 2 GHz. To overcome these challenges we exploit a toroidal design of cavity and magnetic field. A toroidal geometry offers several advantages, two of which are a larger volume for …
We consider the design of a haloscope experiment (ORGAN) to probe for axions at 26.6 GHz. The motivation for this search is to perform the first direct test of a result which claims a possible axion signal at this frequency. There are many technical issues and optimisations that must be considered in the design of a high mass axion haloscope. We discuss the current status of the ORGAN experiment, as well as its future. We also discuss low mass axion haloscopes employing lumped 3D LC resonators.
We report on a holoscope axion search experiment near $19.6\ {\rm μeV}$ from the TASEH collaboration. The experiment is carried out via a frequency-tunable cavity detector with a volume $V = 0.234\ {\rm liter}$ in a magnetic field $B_0 = 8\ {\rm T}$. With a signal receiver that has a system noise temperature $T_{\rm sys} \cong 2.2\ {\rm K}$ and experiment time about 1 month, the search excludes values of the axion-photon coupling constant $g_{\rm aγγ} \gtrsim 8.1 \times 10^{-14} \ {\rm GeV}^{-1}$, a factor of 11 above the KSVZ model, at the 95\% confidence level in the mass range of $19.4687-1…
We propose a new strategy to search for dark matter axions using tunable cryogenic plasmas. Unlike current experiments, which repair the mismatch between axion and photon masses by breaking translational invariance (cavity and dielectric haloscopes), a plasma haloscope enables resonant conversion by matching the axion mass to a plasma frequency. A key advantage is that the plasma frequency is unrelated to the physical size of the device, allowing large conversion volumes. We identify wire metamaterials as a promising candidate plasma, wherein the plasma frequency can be tuned by varying the in…
We explore finite size 3D effects in open axion haloscopes such as a dish antenna, a dielectric disk and a minimal dielectric haloscope consisting of a mirror and one dielectric disk. Particularly dielectric haloscopes are a promising new method for detecting dark matter axions in the mass range above $40\,μ{\rm eV}$. By using two specialized independent approaches - based on finite element methods and Fourier optics - we compute the electromagnetic fields in these settings expected in the presence of an axion dark matter field. This allows us to study diffraction and near field effects for re…
We report the first search results for axion dark matter using an 18\,T high-temperature superconducting magnet haloscope. The scan frequency ranges from 4.7789 to 4.8094\,GHz. No significant signal consistent with the Galactic halo dark matter axion is observed. The results set the best upper bound of axion-photon-photon coupling ($g_{aγγ}$) in the mass ranges of 19.764 to 19.771\,$μ$eV (19.863 to 19.890\,$μ$eV) at 1.5$\times|g_{aγγ}^{\text{KSVZ}}|$ (1.7$\times|g_{aγγ}^{\text{KSVZ}}|$), and 19.772 to 19.863\,$μ$eV at 2.7 $\times|g_{aγγ}^{\text{KSVZ}}|$ with 90\% confidence level, respectively…
The haloscope is one of the most sensitive approaches to the QCD axion physics within the region where the axion is considered to be a dark matter candidate. Current experimental sensitivities, which rely on the lowest fundamental TM010 mode of a cylindrical cavity, are limited to relatively low mass regions. Exploiting higher-order resonant modes would be beneficial because it will enable us to extend the search range with no volume loss and higher quality factors. This approach has been discarded mainly because of the significant degradation of form factor, and difficulty with frequency tuni…
In the search for axion dark matter, the cavity-based haloscope offers the most sensitive approach to the theoretically interesting models in the microwave region. However, experimental searches have been limited to relatively low masses up to a few tens of $μ$eV, benefiting from large detection volumes and high quality factors for a given experimental setup. We propose a new cavity design suitable for axion searches in higher mass regions with enhanced performance. The design features a periodic arrangement of dielectric material in a conventional conducting cavity where the resonant frequenc…
We comment on a recently published paper, Phys. Rev. Applied 9, 014028 (2018), which presents frequency-tuning mechanisms for dielectric resonators and demonstrates their potential application to axion haloscopes. One of the schemes introduces a cylindrical dielectric hollow and splits it in the axial direction to tune the frequency. The authors claim that this scheme offers a 1 to 2-order-of-magnitude improvement in axion search sensitivity in exploiting a higher-order resonant mode. We find that their study is based on unrealistic cavity modeling and inappropriate choice of the figure of mer…
This Letter reports on the first results from the Taiwan Axion Search Experiment with Haloscope, a search for axions using a microwave cavity at frequencies between 4.70750 and 4.79815 GHz. Apart from the non-axion signals, no candidates with a significance more than 3.355 were found. The experiment excludes models with the axion-two-photon coupling $\left|g_{aγγ}\right|\gtrsim 8.2\times 10^{-14}$ GeV$^{-1}$, a factor of eleven above the benchmark KSVZ model, reaching a sensitivity three orders of magnitude better than any existing limits in the mass range 19.4687 < $m_a$ < 19.8436 $μ$eV. It i…
The cavity haloscope has been employed to detect microwave photons resonantly converted from invisible cosmic axions under a strong magnetic field. In this scheme, the axion-photon conversion power has been formulated to be valid for certain conditions, either $Q_{cavity}\ll Q_{\rm axion}$ or $Q_{cavity} \gg Q_{axion}$. This remedy, however, fails when these two quantities are comparable to each other. Furthermore, the noise power flow has been treated independently of the impedance mismatch of the system, which could give rise to misleading estimates of the experimental sensitivity. We revisi…
The axion is a hypothetical particle considered to be the most economical solution to the strong CP problem. It can also be formulated as a compelling component of dark matter. The haloscope, a leading axion detection scheme, relies on the conversion of galactic halo axions into real photons inside a resonant cavity structure in the presence of a static magnetic field, where the generated photon frequency corresponds to the mass of the axion. For maximum sensitivity it is key that the central frequency of the cavity mode structure coincides with the frequency of the generated photon. As the ma…
We present frequency tuning mechanisms for dielectric resonators, which undergo "super-mode" interactions as they tune. The tunable schemes are based on dielectric materials strategically placed inside traditional cylindrical resonant cavities, necessarily operating in Transverse Magnetic modes for use in axion haloscopes. The first technique is based on multiple dielectric disks with radii smaller than that of the cavity. The second scheme relies on hollow dielectric cylinders similar to a Bragg resonator, but of different location and dimension. In particular we engineer a significant increa…
Universidad de Zaragoza（萨拉戈萨大学）；Max-Planck-Institut für Physik (Werner-Heisenberg-Institut)（马克斯·普朗克物理研究所（维尔纳·海森堡研究所））；CERN - European Organization for Nuclear Research（欧洲核子研究组织）
We report details on the axion dark matter search experiment that uses the innovative technologies of a High-Temperature Superconducting (HTS) magnet and a Josephson Parametric Converter (JPC). An 18 T HTS solenoid magnet is developed for this experiment. The JPC is used as the first stage amplifier to achieve a near quantum-limited low-noise condition. The first dark matter axion search was performed with the 18 T axion haloscope. The scan frequency range is from 4.7789 GHz to 4.8094 GHz (30.5 MHz range). No significant signal consistent with Galactic dark matter axion is observed. Our result…
This paper presents the analysis of the data acquired during the first physics run of the Taiwan Axion Search Experiment with Haloscope (TASEH), a search for axions using a microwave cavity at frequencies between 4.70750 and 4.79815 GHz. The data were collected from October 13, 2021 to November 15, 2021, and are referred to as the CD102 data. The analysis of the TASEH CD102 data excludes models with the axion-two-photon coupling $|g_{aγγ}| \gtrsim 8.2\times 10^{-14}$ GeV$^{-1}$, a factor of eleven above the benchmark KSVZ model for the mass range 19.4687 < ma < 19.8436 $μ$eV.
UPLOAD-HELIX: High-Helicity Single-Mode Microwave Haloscope with Low-Noise Interferometric Readout for Ultralight Axion Dark Matter
The University of Western Australia（西澳大学）；Thomas Jefferson National Accelerator Facility（托马斯·杰斐逊国家加速器设施）；University of Birmingham（伯明翰大学）；Selçuk University（塞尔丘克大学）
We present first results and future plans for the Oscillating Resonant Group AxioN (ORGAN) experiment, a microwave cavity axion haloscope situated in Perth, Western Australia designed to probe for high mass axions motivated by several theoretical models. The first stage focuses around 26.6 GHz in order to directly test a claimed result, which suggests axions exist at the corresponding mass of $110~μ$eV. Later stages will move to a wider scan range of 15-50 GHz ($60-210~μ$eV). We present the results of the pathfinding run, which sets a limit on $g_{aγγ}$ of $2.02\times 10^{-12} $eV$^{-1}$ at 26…
A new class of axion haloscope resonators: the polygonal coaxial cavity
INFN, Laboratori Nazionali di Legnaro（意大利国家核物理研究所，莱尼亚罗国家实验室）；Dipartimento di Fisica e Astronomia, Padova（帕多瓦大学物理与天文学系）；INFN, Sezione di Padova（意大利国家核物理研究所，帕多瓦分部）
A real-time Data Acquisition (DAQ) system for the CULTASK axion haloscope experiment was constructed and tested. The CULTASK is an experiment to search for cosmic axions using resonant cavities, to detect photons from axion conversion through the inverse Primakoff effect in a few GHz frequency range in a very high magnetic field and at an ultra low temperature. The constructed DAQ system utilizes a Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) for data processing and Fast Fourier Transformation. This design along with a custom Ethernet packet designed for real-time data transfer enables 100% DAQ effici…
We study the underlying theory of dielectric haloscopes, a new way to detect dark matter axions. When an interface between different dielectric media is inside a magnetic field, the oscillating axion field acts as a source of electromagnetic waves, which emerge in both directions perpendicular to the surface. The emission rate can be boosted by multiple layers judiciously placed to achieve constructive interference and by a large transverse area. Starting from the axion-modified Maxwell equations, we calculate the efficiency of this new dielectric haloscope approach. This technique could poten…
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…
Within the increasing interest in the dark matter axion detection through haloscopes, in which different international groups are currently involved, the RADES group was established in 2016 with the goal of developing very sensitive detection systems to be operated in dipole magnets. This review deals with the work developed by this collaboration during its first five years, from the first designs, based on the multi-cavity concept, aiming to increase the haloscope volume and, so, to improve its sensitivity, their evolution, the data acquisition design, and, finally, the first experimental run…
In contrast to WIMPs, light Dark Matter candidates have increasingly come under the focus of scientific interest. In particular the QCD axion is also able to solve other fundamental problems such as CP-conservation in strong interactions. Galactic axions, axion-like particles and hidden photons can be converted to photons at boundaries between materials of different dielectric constants under a strong magnetic field. Combining many such surfaces, one can enhance this conversion significantly using constructive interference and resonances. The proposed MADMAX setup containing 80 high dielectric…
We propose a new strategy to search for dark matter axions in the mass range of 40--400 $μ$eV by introducing dielectric haloscopes, which consist of dielectric disks placed in a magnetic field. The changing dielectric media cause discontinuities in the axion-induced electric field, leading to the generation of propagating electromagnetic waves to satisfy the continuity requirements at the interfaces. Large-area disks with adjustable distances boost the microwave signal (10--100 GHz) to an observable level and allow one to scan over a broad axion mass range. A sensitivity to QCD axion models is…
A well-motivated class of dark matter candidates, including axions and dark photons, takes the form of coherent oscillations of a light bosonic field. If the dark matter couples to Standard Model states, it may be possible to detect it via absorptions in a laboratory target. Current experiments of this kind include cavity-based resonators that convert bosonic dark matter to electromagnetic fields, operating at microwave frequencies. We propose a new class of detectors at higher frequencies, from the infrared through the ultraviolet, based on the dielectric haloscope concept. In periodic photon…
To account for the dark matter content in our Universe, post-inflationary scenarios predict for the QCD axion a mass in the range $(10-10^3)\,μ\mbox{eV}$. Searches with haloscope experiments in this mass range require the monitoring of resonant cavity modes with frequency above 5\,GHz, where several experimental limitations occur due to linear amplifiers, small volumes, and low quality factors of Cu resonant cavities. In this paper we deal with the last issue, presenting the result of a search for galactic axions using a haloscope based on a $36\,\mbox{cm}^3$ NbTi superconducting cavity. The c…
It is known that haloscopes that search for dark matter axions via the axion-photon anomaly are also sensitive to gravitational radiation through the inverse Gertsenshtein effect. Recently this way of searching for high frequency gravitational waves has gained momentum as it has been shown that the strain sensitivities of such detectors are of the same order of sensitivity to the axion-photon theta angle. Thus, after calculating the sensitivity of a haloscope to an axion signal, we also have calculated the order of magnitude sensitivity to a gravitational wave signal of the same spectral and t…
Weakly interactive slim particles (WISPs), including the QCD axion, axion-like particles (ALPs), and hidden photons, are considered to be strong candidates for the dark matter carrier particle. The microwave cavity experiment WISPDMX is the first direct WISP dark matter search experiment probing the particle masses in the 0.8-2.0 $μ$eV range. The first stage of WISPDMX measurements has been completed at nominal resonant frequencies of the cavity. The second stage of WISPDMX is presently being prepared, targeting hidden photons and axions within 60\% of the entire 0.8-2.0 $μ$eV mass range.
The mass of axion dark matter is only weakly bounded by cosmological observations, necessitating a variety of detection techniques over several orders of magnitude of mass ranges. Axions haloscopes based on resonant cavities have become the current standard to search for dark matter axions. Such structures are inherently narrowband and for low masses the volume of the required cavity becomes prohibitively large. Broadband low-mass detectors have already been proposed using inductive magnetometer sensors and a gapped toroidal solenoid magnet. In this work we propose an alternative, which uses e…
We summarise the recent progress of the Axion Longitudinal Plasma HAloscope (ALPHA) Consortium, a new experimental collaboration to build a plasma haloscope to search for axions and dark photons. The plasma haloscope is a novel method for the detection of the resonant conversion of light dark matter to photons. ALPHA will be sensitive to QCD axions over almost a decade of parameter space, potentially discovering dark matter and resolving the Strong CP problem. Unlike traditional cavity haloscopes, which are generally limited in volume by the Compton wavelength of the dark matter, plasma halosc…
We introduce the Broadband Reflector Experiment for Axion Detection (BREAD) conceptual design and science program. This haloscope plans to search for bosonic dark matter across the [10$^{-3}$, 1] eV ([0.24, 240] THz) mass range. BREAD proposes a cylindrical metal barrel to convert dark matter into photons, which a novel parabolic reflector design focuses onto a photosensor. This unique geometry enables enclosure in standard cryostats and high-field solenoids, overcoming limitations of current dish antennas. A pilot 0.7 m$^{2}$ barrel experiment planned at Fermilab is projected to surpass exist…
In this paper we will describe the characterisation of a rf detection chain based on a travelling wave parametric amplifier (TWPA). The detection chain is meant to be used for dark matter axion searches and thus it is mounted coupled to a high Q microwave resonant cavity. A system noise temperature $T_{\rm sys} = (3.3 \pm 0.1$) K has been measured at a frequency of 10.77 GHz, using a novel scheme allowing measurement of $T_{\rm sys} $ exactly at the cavity output port.
