• Featured in Physics
  • Open Access

Search for Axionlike Dark Matter through Nuclear Spin Precession in Electric and Magnetic Fields

C. Abel et al.
Phys. Rev. X 7, 041034 – Published 14 November 2017
Physics logo See Synopsis: New Constraints on Axion-Gluon Interaction Strength

Abstract

We report on a search for ultralow-mass axionlike dark matter by analyzing the ratio of the spin-precession frequencies of stored ultracold neutrons and Hg199 atoms for an axion-induced oscillating electric dipole moment of the neutron and an axion-wind spin-precession effect. No signal consistent with dark matter is observed for the axion mass range 1024ma1017eV. Our null result sets the first laboratory constraints on the coupling of axion dark matter to gluons, which improve on astrophysical limits by up to 3 orders of magnitude, and also improves on previous laboratory constraints on the axion coupling to nucleons by up to a factor of 40.

  • Figure
  • Figure
  • Figure
  • Figure
  • Received 29 August 2017

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevX.7.041034

Published by the American Physical Society under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International license. Further distribution of this work must maintain attribution to the author(s) and the published article’s title, journal citation, and DOI.

Published by the American Physical Society

Physics Subject Headings (PhySH)

  1. Research Areas
  1. Physical Systems
Gravitation, Cosmology & AstrophysicsNuclear PhysicsAtomic, Molecular & Optical

Synopsis

Key Image

New Constraints on Axion-Gluon Interaction Strength

Published 14 November 2017

An analysis of spin-precession data of atoms and neutrons sets some of the tightest limits to date on the strength of interactions between axions and gluons or nucleons.

See more in Physics

Authors & Affiliations

Click to Expand

Popular Summary

Astrophysical observations indicate that about 95% of all matter and energy in the Universe is composed of “invisible” forms known as dark matter and dark energy, whose nature remains unknown. A promising candidate for dark matter is axions, hypothetical particles of very low mass and high abundance. Axions interact with ordinary matter in ways that are distinct from those of other candidates. So far, most searches for axions have been based on electromagnetic interactions and target axions in the gigahertz frequency range. In contrast, we searched for axions in the nano- to millihertz range—frequencies that are out of reach for those other methods. Although our search ended with a null result, it provides the first laboratory constraints on the coupling of axion dark matter to gluons, improving on astrophysical limits by up to 3 orders of magnitude. Moreover, our results tighten previous laboratory limits on the axion coupling to nucleons by a factor of up to 40.

We looked for signatures stemming from the interactions of axions with nucleons and the gluons therein. Our search is based on interactions that are predicted to induce harmonic oscillations in the electric dipole moment (EDM) and energy levels of the neutron and of atoms. The best neutron EDM measurement so far comes from an experiment at the Institut Laue-Langevin in Grenoble, France, whereas the currently most sensitive experiment is ongoing at the Paul Scherrer Institute in Villigen, Switzerland. We used data from both of these experiments and searched for time variations caused by axion dark matter.

The fact that we saw no signal consistent with the presence of axions places tight constraints on the interaction strengths for ultralow-mass axionlike dark matter and should help to guide both future searches and model refinement.

Key Image

Article Text

Click to Expand

References

Click to Expand
Issue

Vol. 7, Iss. 4 — October - December 2017

Subject Areas
Reuse & Permissions
Author publication services for translation and copyediting assistance advertisement

Authorization Required


×
×

Images

×

Sign up to receive regular email alerts from Physical Review X

Reuse & Permissions

It is not necessary to obtain permission to reuse this article or its components as it is available under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International license. This license permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided attribution to the author(s) and the published article's title, journal citation, and DOI are maintained. Please note that some figures may have been included with permission from other third parties. It is your responsibility to obtain the proper permission from the rights holder directly for these figures.

×

Log In

Cancel
×

Search


Article Lookup

Paste a citation or DOI

Enter a citation
×