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ABSTRACT: The axion is one of the leading particle candidates for the universe's dark matter component. Despite possessing very small couplings, the axion's interaction with photons can be utilized to search for it using a microwave cavity detector. The Axion Dark Matter eXperiment (ADMX) uses such a detector to search for axions in our galactic halo. ADMX has recently added a new, high resolution channel to search for axions in discrete flows. ADMX's medium resolution channel searches for axions in the thermalized component of the halo. We review the motivation for the axion and its properties which make it a good dark matter candidate. We also review the arguments for the existence of discrete flows in galactic halos. A flow of discrete axions with small velocity dispersion will appear as a very narrow peak in the output of a microwave cavity detector. A high resolution search can detect such a peak with large signal to noise. We have performed such a search. The details of the high resolution axion search and analysis procedure are presented. In this search, no axion signal was found in the mass range 1.98-2.17 micro-eV. We place upper limits on the density of axions in local discrete flows based on this result.
We discuss the possibility of GLAST detecting gamma-rays from the annihilation of neutralino dark matter in the Galactic halo. We have used 'Via Lactea', currently the highest resolution simulation of cold dark matter substructure, to quantify the contribution of subhalos to the annihilation signal. We present a simulated allsky map of the expected gamma-ray counts from dark matter annihilation, assuming standard values of particle mass and cross section. In this case GLAST should be able to detect the Galactic center and several individual subhalos. One of the most exciting discoveries that the Gamma-ray Large Area Space Telescope (GLAST) could make, is the detection of gamma-rays from the annihilation of dark matter (DM). Such a measurement would directly address one of the major physics problems of our time: the nature of the DM particle. Whether or not GLAST will actually detect a DM annihilation signal depends on both unknown particle physics and unknown astrophysics theory. Particle physics uncertainties include the type of particle (axion, neutralino, Kaluza-Klein particle, etc.), its mass, and its interaction cross section. From the astrophysical side it appears that DM is not smoothly distributed throughout the Galaxy halo, but instead exhibits abundant clumpy substructure, in the form of thousands of so-called subhalos. The observability of DM annihilation radiation originating in Galactic DM subhalos depends on their abundance, distribution, and internal properties. Numerical simulations have been used in the past to estimate the annihilation flux from DM substructure, but since the subhalo properties, especially their central density profile, which determines their annihilation luminosity, are very sensitive to numerical resolution, it makes sense to re-examine their contribution with higher resolution simulations.
An important, open research topic today is to understand the relevance that dark matter halo substructure may have for dark matter searches. In the standard cosmological model, halo substructure or subhalos are predicted to be largely abundant inside larger halos, for example, galaxies such as ours, and are thought to form first and later merge to form larger structures. Dwarf satellite galaxies—the most massive exponents of halo substructure in our own galaxy—are already known to be excellent targets for dark matter searches, and indeed, they are constantly scrutinized by current gamma-ray experiments in the search for dark matter signals. Lighter subhalos not massive enough to have a visible counterpart of stars and gas may be good targets as well, given their typical abundances and distances. In addition, the clumpy distribution of subhalos residing in larger halos may boost the dark matter signals considerably. In an era in which gamma-ray experiments possess, for the first time, the exciting potential to put to test the preferred dark matter particle theories, a profound knowledge of dark matter astrophysical targets and scenarios is mandatory should we aim for accurate predictions of dark matter-induced fluxes for investing significant telescope observing time on selected targets and for deriving robust conclusions from our dark matter search efforts. In this regard, a precise characterization of the statistical and structural properties of subhalos becomes critical. In this Special Issue, we aim to summarize where we stand today on our knowledge of the different aspects of the dark matter halo substructure; to identify what are the remaining big questions, and how we could address these; and, by doing so, to find new avenues for research.
The unambiguous detection of dark matter annihilation in our Galaxy would unravel one of the most outstanding puzzles in particle physics and cosmology. Recent observations have motivated models in which the annihilation rate is boosted by the Sommerfeld effect, a nonperturbative enhancement arising from a long-range attractive force. We applied the Sommerfeld correction to Via Lactea II, a high-resolution N-body simulation of a Milky Way-sized galaxy, to investigate the phase-space structure of the galactic halo. We found that the annihilation luminosity from kinematically cold substructure could be enhanced by orders of magnitude relative to previous calculations, leading to the prediction of gamma-ray fluxes from as many as several hundred dark clumps that should be detectable by the Fermi satellite.
An important, open research topic today is to understand the relevance that dark matter halo substructure may have for dark matter searches. In the standard cosmological model, halo substructure or subhalos are predicted to be largely abundant inside larger halos, for example, galaxies such as ours, and are thought to form first and later merge to form larger structures. Dwarf satellite galaxies--the most massive exponents of halo substructure in our own galaxy--are already known to be excellent targets for dark matter searches, and indeed, they are constantly scrutinized by current gamma-ray experiments in the search for dark matter signals. Lighter subhalos not massive enough to have a visible counterpart of stars and gas may be good targets as well, given their typical abundances and distances. In addition, the clumpy distribution of subhalos residing in larger halos may boost the dark matter signals considerably. In an era in which gamma-ray experiments possess, for the first time, the exciting potential to put to test the preferred dark matter particle theories, a profound knowledge of dark matter astrophysical targets and scenarios is mandatory should we aim for accurate predictions of dark matter-induced fluxes for investing significant telescope observing time on selected targets and for deriving robust conclusions from our dark matter search efforts. In this regard, a precise characterization of the statistical and structural properties of subhalos becomes critical. In this Special Issue, we aim to summarize where we stand today on our knowledge of the different aspects of the dark matter halo substructure; to identify what are the remaining big questions, and how we could address these; and, by doing so, to find new avenues for research.
The axion is a hypothetical elementary particle that came out of a solution to the Strong-CP problem in Quantum Chromodynamics (QCD). The properties of the axion also make it a highly compelling candidate for dark matter. Axion haloscopes are instruments that search for axion dark matter in the local Milky Way halo by searching for the conversion of an axion into photons via the inverse Primakoff effect. The Axion Dark Matter eXperiment (ADMX) is by far the most sensitive axion haloscope, being the first to exclude benchmark models for the QCD axion and continuing to take data at high sensitivity. This thesis reports on a run by ADMX which excluded dark matter axions in the galactic halo over the mass range 2.81--3.31[mu]eV. This unprecedented sensitivity in this mass range is achieved by deploying an ultra low-noise Josephson parametric amplifier as the first-stage signal amplifier.
We review the status of two ongoing large-scale searches for axions which may constitute the dark matter of our Milky Way halo. The experiments are based on the microwave cavity technique proposed by Sikivie, and marks a ''second-generation'' to the original experiments performed by the Rochester-Brookhaven-Fermilab collaboration, and the University of Florida group.
The axion is a hypothetical elementary particle resulting from a solution to the "Strong-CP" problem. This serious problem in the standard model of particle physics is manifested as a 1010 discrepancy between the measured upper limit and the calculated value of the neutron's electric dipole moment. Furthermore, a light (~ [mu] eV) axion is an ideal dark matter candidate: axions would have been copiously produced during the Big Bang and would be the primary component of the dark matter in the universe. The resolution of the Strong-CP problem and the discovery of the composition of dark matter are two of the most pressing problems in physics. The observation of a light, dark-matter axion would resolve both of these problems. The Axion Dark Matter eXperiment (ADMX) is the most sensitive search for dark-matter axions. Axions in our Milky Way Galaxy may scatter off a magnetic field and convert into microwave photons. ADMX consists of a tunable high-Q RF cavity within the bore of a large, 8.5 Tesla superconducting solenoidal magnet. When the cavity's resonant frequency matches the axion's total energy, the probability of axion-to-photon conversion is enhanced. The cavity's narrow bandwidth requires ADMX to slowly scan possible axion masses. A receiver amplifies, mixes, and digitizes the power developed in the cavity from possible axion-to-photon conversions. This is the most sensitive spectral receiver of microwave radiation in the world. The resulting data is scrutinized for an axion signal above the thermal background. ADMX first operated from 1995-2005 and produced exclusion limits on the energy of dark-matter axions from 1.9 [mu] eV to 3.3 [mu] eV. In order to improve on these limits and continue the search for plausible dark-matter axions, the system was considerably upgraded from 2005 until 2008. In the upgrade, the key technical advance was the use of a dc Superconducting QUantum Interference Device (SQUID) as a microwave amplifier. The SQUID amplifier's noise level is near the allowed minimum from quantum mechanics, allowing ADMX to reduce its thermal noise background by up to 100x. However, SQUIDs are extremely sensitive to magnetic fields, such as those within in ADMX. Integrating a SQUID amplifier into ADMX presented a serious technical challenge. Commissioning the SQUID amplifier was a major focus of my thesis work. This work demonstrates the successful use of a SQUID amplifier in ADMX during operations from 2008-2010. Compared to other dark-matter candidates, the axion's mass and the axion's coupling strength to normal matter and radiation are rather tightly constrained. This allows for the near-definitive elimination or detection of dark-matter axions. A successful detection in ADMX would immediately lead to a determination of the axion's spectral line shape. This shape encodes the history of the Milky Way's formation and is therefore of high scientific importance. The imperfectly-constrained Milky Way dark-matter halo, however, produces remnant uncertainties of the axion signal in both its spectral line-shape and its total intensity, complicating the ADMX search. This work investigates proposed features of dark-matter halo models which enhance ADMX's sensitivity. From these models, this work presents the corresponding exclusion limits for both the local axion density and axion-to-photon coupling strength for axions with mass in the 3.36 [mu] eV to 3.69 [mu] eV region.