CAREER: Towards Second Generation Dark Matter Experiments

职业：迈向第二代暗物质实验

• 批准号: 1151869
• 负责人: Jodi Cooley
• 金额: $ 81.71万
• 依托单位: Southern Methodist University
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Continuing Grant
• 财政年份: 2012
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2012-03-01 至 2018-02-28
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1151869&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: CAREER; Towards; Second; Generation; Dark

In pursuit of improving our understanding of the universe by studying the constituents of dark matter, the research objective of this award is to increase the current detection sensitivity of dark matter-nucleon scattering by a factor of about 100 in order to measure the cross-section between Weakly Interacting Massive Particles (WIMPs) and nucleons or to severely restrict theoretically favorable parameter space. In order to achieve this objective, the SuperCDMS experiment must maintain a background environment of less than one event. This group will advance analysis techniques to discriminate electromagnetic backgrounds from dark matter signals using the new interleaved Z-sensitive Ionization and Phonon (iZIP) detectors which are scheduled to be deployed at Soudan. In addition, they are performing calculations and developing simulations to estimate the irreducible internal background from alpha-n and fission interactions in materials immediately surrounding the SuperCDMS detectors. Broader impacts: The award will also fund an outreach program that will increase the public's appreciation for science. In pursuit of this goal, the educational objective is to use SuperCDMS to support secondary teachers through the QuarkNet program and create research opportunities for undergraduates at SMU. Students and postdoctoral scholars working on this project will receive strong scientific and educational preparation in the techniques of low temperature physics, high energy physics and astrophysics and the analysis of data.

为了通过研究暗物质的组成来提高我们对宇宙的理解，该奖项的研究目标是将暗物质-核子散射的当前检测灵敏度提高约100倍，以测量弱相互作用大质量粒子（WIMPs）和核子之间的横截面或严格限制理论上有利的参数空间。为了实现这一目标，SuperCDMS实验必须保持少于一个事件的背景环境。该小组将推进分析技术，使用新的交错Z敏感电离和声子（iZIP）探测器将电磁背景与暗物质信号区分开来，这些探测器计划部署在苏丹。此外，他们正在进行计算和开发模拟，以估计SuperCDMS探测器周围材料中α-n和裂变相互作用的不可约内部背景。更广泛的影响：该奖项还将资助一个外展计划，这将增加公众对科学的欣赏。为了实现这一目标，教育目标是使用SuperCDMS通过QuarkNet计划支持中学教师，并为SMU的本科生创造研究机会。从事该项目的学生和博士后学者将在低温物理学，高能物理学和天体物理学技术以及数据分析方面获得强有力的科学和教育准备。