CAREER: Towards a Definitive Test of DAMA's Annual Modulation Signal

天体物理观测和宇宙学数据得出了一个明确的结论，即近四分之一的宇宙由暗物质组成。寻找暗物质解决了粒子天体物理学中的一个基本问题。目前的模型预测，我们的银河系笼罩在暗物质的光环中。随着太阳围绕银河系运行，地球围绕太阳运行，我们预计流经地球的暗物质流量每年都会发生调制。如果意大利的DAMA实验观察到的调制是由于暗物质，那么在南半球使用相同目标材料的实验将有望观察到相同相位和幅度的调制。这将是观测到暗物质的确凿证据。如果调制是由于与季节相关的环境背景，那么在两个半球的情况将是相反的。该奖项将资助一个综合研究和教育项目，重点是开发基于碘化钠(NaI)的暗物质物理探测器。研究计划包括三项主要活动：分析目前在南极冰层表面下2500米处工作的17公斤NaI探测器的数据，系统研究NaI探测器的特性和脉冲形状识别技术，以及拟议安装在南半球的250公斤NaI探测器的模拟和灵敏度研究。更广泛的影响：该奖项还将资助一系列教育和外联活动，旨在通过展示物理学家可以从事的广泛职业，招聘和留住STEM领域的物理专业学生和物理学家。将特别注重招聘和留住物理学领域的妇女、残疾人和代表性不足的少数群体。

Astrophysical observations and cosmological data have led to the unambiguous conclusion that nearly a quarter of the Universe consists of dark matter. The search for dark matter addresses one of the fundamental questions in particle astrophysics. Current models predict that our galaxy is encased in a halo of dark matter. As the Sun orbits around the galaxy and the Earth around the Sun, we expect there to be an annual modulation in the flux of dark matter that passes through the Earth. If the modulation observed by the DAMA experiment in Italy is due to dark matter, an experiment in the Southern Hemisphere with the same target material would expect to observe modulations with the same phase and amplitude. This would be unambiguous evidence for the observation of dark matter. If the modulation is due to an environmental background related to the seasons, it will be opposite in the two hemispheres.This award will fund an integrated research and education program focused on the development of sodium iodide-(NaI)-based detectors for dark matter physics. The research program consists of three main activities: analysis of data from a 17 kilogram NaI detector currently operating 2500 meters below the surface in the South Pole ice, a systematic study of the characteristics and pulse shape discrimination techniques of NaI detectors, and the simulations and sensitivity studies for a proposed 250 kilogram NaI detector to be mounted in the Southern Hemisphere. Broader impacts: This award will also fund a series of educational and outreach activities designed to recruit and retain physics majors and physicists in STEM fields by showcasing the wide range of careers available to physicists. A special focus will be given to recruit and retain women, persons with disabilities, and underrepresented minorities in physics.