Collaborative Research: The Search for Light Dark Matter with DAMIC

Dark matter is a ubiquitous yet invisible presence in our universe. It dictated how galaxies formed in the first place, and now moves their stars at puzzling speeds. From these and other colossal gravitational effects the dark matter mass in the universe is known to be five times that of ordinary matter and composed of unknown particles, which interact weakly with ordinary matter. This award will support the Dark MAtter In CCDs (DAMIC) experiment, which searches for dark matter particles with a novel detector technology. The nature of dark matter constitutes one of the most fundamental questions in science. Its discovery as a yet unknown particle would have profound implications in our understanding of the universe, and open new directions in particle physics and cosmology. This award will enable immersive research experiences for students, engagement of the local community and the general public, and innovative partnerships bringing science to formal and informal audiences. The DAMIC experiment is designed to detect nuclear and electronic recoils induced by dark matter in silicon charge coupled devices (CCDs). Scientific CCDs are commonly used in the focal plane of astronomical telescopes for the digital imaging of faint astrophysical objects. DAMIC has pioneered their unconventional use as dark matter detectors at the SNOLAB laboratory (located in a mine 2 km beneath Sudbury, Canada); with this award a several-hundred-gram detector - DAMIC-M - will be installed at the Laboratoire Souterrain de Modane in France. Single ionization charges produced by a dark matter interaction will be detected in DAMIC-M with high resolution thanks to non-destructive, repetitive measurements of the CCD pixel charge. With this novel technology DAMIC-M will have unprecedented sensitivity to light dark matter (≈ eV energies are enough to free an electron in silicon). This award will support the participation and leadership roles of the research groups at University of Chicago and University of Washington in the DAMIC experiment construction, installation and commissioning. The award scope includes collecting a data sample corresponding to a target exposure of few hundred g-year and performing a first search for dark matter. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.