TY - JOUR
T1 - Overcoming velocity suppression in dark-matter direct-detection experiments
AU - Dienes, Keith R.
AU - Kumar, Jason
AU - Thomas, Brooks
AU - Yaylali, David
PY - 2014/7/11
Y1 - 2014/7/11
N2 - Pseudoscalar couplings between Standard-Model quarks and dark matter are normally not considered relevant for dark-matter direct-detection experiments because they lead to velocity-suppressed scattering cross sections in the nonrelativistic limit. However, at the nucleon level, such couplings are effectively enhanced by factors of order O(mN/mq)∼103, where mN and mq are appropriate nucleon and quark masses, respectively. This enhancement can thus be sufficient to overcome the corresponding velocity suppression, implying - contrary to common lore - that direct-detection experiments can indeed be sensitive to pseudoscalar couplings. In this work, we explain how this enhancement arises, and present a model-independent analysis of pseudoscalar interactions at direct-detection experiments. We also identify those portions of the corresponding dark-matter parameter space which can be probed at current and future experiments of this type, and discuss the role of isospin violation in enhancing the corresponding experimental reach.
AB - Pseudoscalar couplings between Standard-Model quarks and dark matter are normally not considered relevant for dark-matter direct-detection experiments because they lead to velocity-suppressed scattering cross sections in the nonrelativistic limit. However, at the nucleon level, such couplings are effectively enhanced by factors of order O(mN/mq)∼103, where mN and mq are appropriate nucleon and quark masses, respectively. This enhancement can thus be sufficient to overcome the corresponding velocity suppression, implying - contrary to common lore - that direct-detection experiments can indeed be sensitive to pseudoscalar couplings. In this work, we explain how this enhancement arises, and present a model-independent analysis of pseudoscalar interactions at direct-detection experiments. We also identify those portions of the corresponding dark-matter parameter space which can be probed at current and future experiments of this type, and discuss the role of isospin violation in enhancing the corresponding experimental reach.
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U2 - 10.1103/PhysRevD.90.015012
DO - 10.1103/PhysRevD.90.015012
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:84904365263
SN - 1550-7998
VL - 90
JO - Physical Review D - Particles, Fields, Gravitation and Cosmology
JF - Physical Review D - Particles, Fields, Gravitation and Cosmology
IS - 1
M1 - 015012
ER -